Elizabeth Eden: Hopeless Ravenclaw
by Invader Tar
Summary: Liz Eden was intent on ruining Sirius Black’s life, of teaching him a lesson, by becoming the girl he would fall for and breaking his heart. However, not everything always goes according to plan. SBOC RLOC Rated T for language and sexual innuendo.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own nor claim the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling, this also applies to every chapter posted on this story.

Original A/N: Like Oh Em Gee. Yeah, I know, I have a serious problem with the delete button. I'm too delete-happy. Anyway, here's a re-do of Ashes to Ashes, which was a re-do of Holiday to Utah. Jeez, I suck.

New A/N: Alright, so truth be told, it's fourteen chapters later and I still have no idea where I'm going with this story. However, I thought I should re-write the first chapter seeing as how it doesn't do the rest of the story justice.

Long time readers: The story is the same, it's just better, and more well written.

New readers: Enjoy.

* * *

I sat in the compartment, half asleep due to our slumber party the night before. My friends and I had a habit of staying up the entire night on the last night of summer, resulting in a first day of school filled with exhaustion and sleep deprivation. I looked around the compartment. Gwyneth Garret, one of my best friends, and the one who was the original endorser of the all-nighter, was sound asleep where as I had some motion sickness. Katherine Kirkwood, possibly my closest best friend, sat across the compartment from me, her nose buried in a Muggle book. She was alert and awake, seeing as how she didn't think of herself as a subject to the all-nighter rules.

"Katherine," I whispered, "I feel sick."

"Me too, Liz," Demetria Didd, my third and last best friend, whispered back.

"It's that Potter boy," Kate said as she looked up from her book glared outside the compartment door where Potter was attempting to seem nonchalant, as if he weren't up to no good. If I knew Potter, which I like to assume I did, he was probably trying to set the train on fire.

"Not that—I think I'm going to throw up!"

"Oh," Kate said, losing interest and returning to her book.

"I'm going to go get something to settle my stomach," I said to the compartment, seeing as how it's residents had lost interest long ago. "Oh, and to change. We're almost at Hogwarts."

"Going somewhere, Eden?" asked an all too familiar voice immediately after my foot hit the ground of the hallway.

"Damn," I cursed under my breath, reprimanding myself for not waiting a moment or two to give Potter's minions a chance to follow him to wherever the hell he was off to. "Yes, not that it's any business of yours, Sirius Black." I whirled around to face him: the infamous Sirius Black. He was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed against his chest. I noticed that his jet black hair was longer than last year, now grazing the top-most part of his shoulders. His stormy gray eyes bore into my green ones, and unlike mine they wore an expression of amusement, where as mine wore one of annoyance. His mere presence intimidated me. He was the embodiment of perfection in the male specimen, if one ignored the requirement of brains, which so many often did.

"Oh come, come, Eden," he said with a heavy sigh. "There is no reason to be so hostile."

"I'm not being hostile," I said, turning to walk away. "I just have no time for the likes of you."

"On the contrary, Eden," I could hear the stupid smile in his voice, "you'll have loads of time to dawdle now that Diggory's finally dumped you." I turned around, wand ready and in hand.. but it was too late. The little critter had returned to whatever hole he had climbed out of. It's a wonder how fast gossip gets around when all means of communication are magical. I wondered if anyone had bothered mentioning that Diggory, the golden boy, had dumped me because I wouldn't have sex with him. Hmm... Probably not. Diggory was the school's idol. Or, err... one of them.

After getting a chocolate frog from the Food Trolley, I changed into my robes and returned back to the compartment just as the train pulled to a stop. Befire I knew it, we were in the Great Hall, listening to Dumbledore blabber about something or other of no importance to anyone but Filch.

"What do you suppose Dumbledore's blabbing about?" Asked Gwyneth Garret, the previously sleeping best friend. Together, we were the only four Ravenclaw girls in our year.

"I don't know," Demi yawned.

"He said something about the forest," Kate, ironically enough, said, looking up from her book. "And now he's talking about some of Filch's newest rules." See? I told you: Filch is crazy. "You don't have to pay close attention to know."

"This is true, why should we bore ourselves with the headmaster?" I laughed, causing a first year to look up at me with huge watery eyes and an open mouth. By the expression he gave me, you'd think I had killed his puppy. I sighed in frustration. "Were we that annoying as first years?"

"I hope not," Gwyn said, putting the subject aside with a wave of her hand. "Anyway, girls, any new goals for the upcoming year?"

"Outstanding's in all my classes," Kate said, looking up from her book.

"It shouldn't be hard," Demi snorted. "We _are_ Ravenclaws."

"Bravery, and drive are fine," I said, looking to the Slytherin and Gryffindor tables in turn, "and whatever it is Hufflepuffs have to offer, but wit is the only thing of any value."

"To Ravenclaw," Demi toasted.

"To Ravenclaw," we all echoed, clinging our goblets of Pumpkin Juice together. Half an hour later, after all were fed and fat, Kate and I led the Ravenclaw table to the Commons, telling them all the newest password.

"Cave Inimicum," they all echoed after us, tattooing the year's first password into their brains. Kate and I were to patrol the halls later on in the night. Sometimes, I regretted being a Prefect. I was exhausted.

* * *

"Kate, my dear, it is safe to say that I hate you," I yawned a while later, sitting in my favorite chair by the fireplace.

"And why is that?" She asked, with absolutely no interest in her voice.

"I am thoroughly, utterly, and completely exhausted."

"You can stay if you like," she shrugged. "I can tell whoever who cares that you weren't feeling well."

"No, Katherine, I shan't miss my chance of patrolling these halls and keeping them out of the grasps of evil," I said, getting up. Okay, so maybe I can be a little over-dramatic sometimes.

We pushed out of the portrait hole and each walked to our separate hallways. Patrolling was almost an involuntary reaction this year. Repeating the action nightly last year had taught me to walk up and down the halls, either lost in thought, or free of all thought. I had gotten so used to it that it took no real brain function, only a bit of physical involvement which soon became an all too familiar pattern.

"Ah!" I shouted, as I ran into Peter Pettigrew after coming around one of the corners. "Ten points from Gryffindor," I yelped as my heart raced, more so because he had caused me panic with his rat-like features than because I truly cared that he was out of bed after hours.

The rest of the night went smoothly, and before I knew it, Kate and I were back in our Dormitory along with Gwyn and Demi. It felt nice to be home. Hogwarts had felt more like home ever since my first year. My mother had died, causing my father to enroll me in Salem's Summer Institute for Young Witches and Wizards. It was the best course of action since he was usually on business for the Ministry for days on end, what with you-know-who's rise to power. I fell asleep rather comfortably that night, completely unaware of the events that were to take place the next day.

* * *

Original A/N: Yikes. Short chapter! Sorry, I felt my inspiration completely leave and rather than butcher J. K. Rowling's work any further, I decided to stop right there. –sighs– Hope you like it!

A/N: Just a little something to tide you over until Chapter 15.** Review**.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Yay! Reviewers! And people adding the story to their story alert list thingie!

Dizrythmia Chook: As you are my first reviewer, I feel that now we have an unshakable bond! Please tell me everything you dislike in the story and how to change it, this also applies for the rest of the chapters. Thank you for your kind words!

PS: I once wrote a novel up to 134 pages before deciding I hated it and starting over.

pOkEd AnD sUrViVeD: Awesome Pen Name! Second reviewer! Double yay! The above also applies for you.

EFF!!!! I just realized something! In the first chapter I used Lily's name instead of Demitria's! I was originally going to have them be Gryffindors but I didn't want them to be in the same house as Sirius and blah blah. Ignore all that. LILY EVANS IS NOT, I REPEAT, NOT ONE OF HER BEST FRIENDS!! –deep breath-

* * *

"What-did-you-do?" it was Gwyneth's words that awoke me from my peaceful slumber.

"What?" I said, waking up. I wiped the drool from my face, pushing my hair to the side and thanking the lords that each year, we got the weekend to adjust to the castle before classes started.

"Is it true?" I realized that she wasn't alone. Demi and Kate were standing to either side of her.

"Is what true?" my vision returned to it's normal sharpness. Gwyneth and Demetria looked absolutely fuming where as Kate looked worried.

"You took points away from Pettigrew?" Gwyn asked, as if asking me whether I had thrown away the cure for cancer.

"Yes, what's the big deal?" I asked, yawning and walking over to the bathroom.

"He's a Marauder, that's what."

"And I'm an Aries. Once again, what's the big deal?" this had apparently been the wrong answer.

Everyone seemed to be mad at me, although at this point, Gwyn was the only one speaking. Katherine looked completely uncomfortable, and Demi seemed as if she actually sympathized with me. I never got why Sirius Black was supposed to be such a big deal.

"The big deal, Elizabeth, is that now you've invoked the wrath of Potter and Black upon us!" Gwyn's eyes seemed to be set on fire by this point.

"Well, he _was_ out after hours," Kate began, coming do my defense.

"Don't provoke her, Katherine!" Gwyn shouted. She seemed to be absolutely terrified at what me taking ten points away from Pettigrew would mean for our house, and for us, socially speaking.

"Look, he was breaking the rules," I said between brushing my teeth. "The protocol is to deduct points. I won't pretend like nothing happened just because he's friends with Potter and Black."

"Do you just not get it?" Gwyn thundered. "They won't stop until they have our blood!" She stomped out of the door, dragging Demi with her.

"What is going on here?" I asked brushing my hair. I couldn't understand what Gwyn was talking about. Maybe it was because I had been half asleep, or because she really didn't seem to be making any sense to me whatsoever.

"Apparently Black and Potter are furious that you deducted points from Gryffindor due to Pettigrew," she spoke, leaning against the door's frame.

"Yes, but he was out after hours as you said."

"True, however, this is the first time you've deducted points from anyone," She took a deep breath. "And the first time you've come across a Gryffindor."

"Wait, so they think this was a personal attack on Gryffindors?" I said, changing out of my pajamas and into normal clothes.

"Yep, and apparently Peter was delivering a note to some girl from Black, and seeing as how Black is a—"

"Ignorant supercilious brute," I said for her.

"Precisely." She gave me a smile. "He thinks that it's because he beat you in the final duel in Defense last year."

"What?" I shouted, outraged. "He only won because Potter distracted me!"

"I know," she sighed, "but it doesn't mean he does."

"This was not a personal attack," I shouted. "Black is not of such importance to me!" I was getting extremely irritated. Why did everyone always want to cut Black slack? He was just like the rest of us, and he should've been treated as such! This was completely unfair—to me.

"Tell that to the Gryffindor girls," she said, following me to the Commons. "We heard it through the grape vine."

"Better yet," I said, pushing out of the painting, "I'll tell Sirius Black that—"

"Tell me what?"

"Speaking of the dim-witted devil!" I shouted, without getting a chance to think over what I had just said.

"Watch your manners Eden," Potter said, from beside Black. "Or I'll have to deduct points from Ravenclaw."

"Shut it potter," Kate smiled sweetly.

"Black, this was not a personal attack, you're not of nearly enough importance to me. Your little minion was out after hours," I said, bringing up all the points Kate and I had discussed in the dorms. "Protocol is to deduct point."

"Be that as it may," Black spoke. For a second I thought he was seeing it my way. I'm such a fool. "You've never deducted points from any other house."

He just stood there, looking like the big oaf he was. He seemed to just expect special treatment, like he had gotten it all his life. I was pretty sure he had since his family was one of the most ancient Wizarding families in Europe. He was probably adjusted to having things handed to him wherever he went.

"No other house has scared me half to death before," I said angrily. "What makes you all think that you're above the law just because you're _you_."

"Sirius Black," Kate spoke, matching my anger. "You are not a special and individual snowflake."

"Fine then," Black smiled, "just stop treating me like you've got a schoolgirl crush on me by picking on my friends!" And they walked away.

"The nerve of him!" I shouted, kicking the wall which to my surprise emitted an 'ouch'. "If I were to dye half of my hair Gold," I said, fingering my dark red hair, "he'd find a way to link it to himself!"

"Well, your hair _would _be Gryffindor colors…" Kate said, wondering to herself.

"Shut up Katherine, you're of no help."

She left me alone to pace the halls as I pleased, adding a sarcastic remark here and there, but mainly remaining quiet.

"Sorry," she giggled. "Look, don't let him bother you, let him think whatever he wishes. It's his fantasy world. Besides, you're giving him special treatment by thinking about it so much."

"Thank you," I said, taking a deep breath to compose myself. "Black is too insignificant to make any change in the world whatsoever." We were by the Great Hall at this point, where students were still eating breakfast.

"Shall we?" Katherine asked, jutting out her arm.

"We shall," I said, linking my arm with hers.

Throughout breakfast, there were quite a few people staring at me eat, and murmuring. They were mainly from Gryffindor, but that didn't make it any less annoying. A few times there was actual pointing, to which we all responded by giving them the bird.

"It was ten points," I said miserably, after flipping off my third stalker of the meal. "Ten wretched points! Can't they just let it go?"

"They're Gryffindors, of course they can't," Gwyn said, deciding to talk to me despite Demetria's current cold shoulder.

"They've been sore ever since we won the house cup last year," Kate said sympathetically.

"I just don't get why it's such an issue, it was just ten points," I said glumly. I hated attention, especially when it was this negative.

"Because it's Sirius Black," Demetria spoke for the first time that night. "He's Hogwarts' favorite scoundrel."

"Well, I don't care," I pouted. I probably looked like a five year old. "He doesn't get special treatment just because he's—"

"Gorgeous, smart, and hilarious," finished Kate.

"Katherine!" I scorned, "No switching over to the dark side!"

The rest of lunch seemed to be spent in mostly silence. None of us felt safe saying anything with so many pairs of eyes concentrating on us. Even though it was foolish to think this way, it felt as if everyone seemed to be reading our thoughts. Ironically enough, the four people on the Gryffindor table _not _gawking at us were Potter, Black, Pettigrew and Lupin.

After lunch, Kate and I headed to the library. Gwyn decided that she wanted to know what else was being said about the incident, and thus, took Demi with her to go into the fields and eavesdrop on people.

"Don't look now," Kate muttered out the side of her mouth, "but Lupin is across the library from us, by the Biographies of Famous Witches and Wizards section."

I casually looked up from my book, attempting to seem as if I was looking for a clock. She was right. There he was, the spawn of Satan himself, sitting there reading a rather gigantic book.

"That means the others can't be too far away," I mutter back suspiciously.

Kate got up from her seat, and casually walked around the more popular areas of the library. She was attempting to seem as if she were looking for a book, but ended up looking like she had to pee instead. As much as I love Kate, she is not that great of an actress. She sat back down, shrugging and we returned to our books. Kate and I were attempting to find a social guide to situations such as these.

"They're coming," Kate groaned looking towards the doors. She was right, Black and Potter were coming into the library, tailed closely by Pettigrew who was attempting to see over a large pile of books in his arms. They seemed to use him as a work mule.

"Do you think we can leave without being detected?" I asked, shrinking into my chair and holding the book up higher.

"It's worth a try, wait until they get over to Remus, and then we'll just leave," she laughed. We sounded like hostages in our own school. Before I knew it, Kate and I got up and attempted to seem casual as we half walked half ran to the door. When we got outside, neither of us could stop laughing.

"Did you see the looks those fourth years gave us?" Kate laughed. "They looked as if they thought we were about to spontaneously combust!"

"Luckily," I giggled as we walked outside into the fields, "I don't think Black noticed."

"Black doesn't notice much until it hits him in the face," she laughed, "by which point he's too stupid to realize what it is." We finally spotted Gwyn and Demi by our favorite tree and made our way to them.

"Did you two find out anything interesting?" Kate asked, yawning and stretching out next to me. She took a piece of chocolate out of her pocket, and gave me half.

"Well, apparently, Potter has a crush on Lily Evans," said Demi.

"Filch could've told you _that_," I snorted. "Anything interesting?"

"I don't know whether I should tell you this," Gwyn took a deep breath, seeming rather excited to tell me whatever it was she wasn't sure about, "but apparently Diggory is dating Marilyn Mercer."

"Marilyn Mercer!" Kate shouted, chocking on her chocolate. "But she's a skank!"

"That's precisely why he's dating her," I said resentfully.

"Don't worry, Liz," Demi said, patting my arm. "Half the school thinks you're with Hayden Heathers." I snorted, perfect. The only sixth year male Ravenclaw I talked to. _Of course_ I'd be dating him.

"And the other half thinks you're dating Severus Snape to offend Black," Gwyn laughed.

"Well, I don't mind so much about Snape," I sighed. I was beyond attempting to deal with this anymore.

"He's quite handsome once you get over the initial shock of his nose," Kate said, making us all laugh.

"Well, he really isn't bad looking," Gwyn said, pointing out said Slytherin across the field from us. "He's really quite good looking, it's just his attitude that offends most." We all took a moment to nod our agreement.

"I don't know," I said after a moment. "Severus has always been nice to me."

"That's because you're a potions and Defense Goddess," Kate said. "And those are his favorite subjects." None of us questioned how she knew that. Kate never discriminated against anyone, and thus had a lot of different friends.

"Maybe you _should_ date Severus," Gwyn said playfully. "It'd be funny to see Black's expression."

"Black doesn't care what any of us do," Demi said, also laying down. I was the only one still sitting up. "We're not exactly in his circle of friends."

"Well then, let's become a part of his circle of friends," Gwyn smiled, pulling my arm and making me lay down next to her. "Then, Liz can date Severus."

"Yeah," Kate said, I could hear the smile in her voice. "Black needs to learn that he won't always get what he wants."

* * *

A/N: I think that's a great spot to leave for the time being, don't you? Merry Christmast, everyone! Or if you're like me, I hope you had a happy Hanukkah! 


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: To be quite frank with you all, I have no idea where this story is headed. I should really start outlining my plot!

Thank you all who added EE:HR to your Story Alert, or Favorite Story list. But mainly, thanks to those of you who've reviewed! It's the reviews that keep me interested in the story and writing.

xxvisionaryxx: Me neither, I have no idea where I'm going with this story, here's hoping the journey to the end is fun! I need to stop using so many exclamation marks..!

Side Note: Just felt like telling you guys that deep deep down, I'm a Slytherin Snob.

* * *

"What are you guys talking about?" I asked, more than a little suspiciously. We were back in the dormitories at Gwyn's request. She had wanted a more 'secluded' area. 

"Look, Liz," Gwyn began pacing the room, "you're the one who's always talking about how Black needs to realize that he's just another student."

"Are you going to just talk about it," Demi added.

"Or actually do something about it?" Gwyn finished. I hated how synchronized they had become ever since they had spent the summer together.

"Just because she says he should open his eyes," Kate reasoned, "doesn't mean she wants to open them for him."

Gwyn had been attempting to pressure Kate and I into joining forces with her to bring down Black. I had to admit, it _did_ sound like a beautiful idea… But simultaneously, I didn't want to spend any more time with Black than I had to. I already got enough of his company. We had had nearly all of our classes together since first year.

"I don't want to be around him more than I already have to," I finally voiced my thoughts.

"But this is for a good cause!" Gwyn finally came to a stop at the foot of my bed. Kate and I had been sitting down, and Gwyn and Demi had been pacing the floor. They rather looked like guards protecting a castle of some sort.

"Think about it Liz," Gwyn commenced her argument. "It's a way to make him realize that he can't always get what he wants, that he's just like the rest of us."

"Can you imagine his face when we're through with him?" Demi exhaled with excitement.

My defenses were weakening. It sounded like a great idea—a way to seek revenge on Black. Revenge for every single time he had cut in line in front of me, everytime he had gotten a good grade because the teacher liked him, everytime he had gotten something he didn't deserve due to his popularity. And this way, no one would think of it as spiteful, as a way to make him pay for the duel he (wrongfully) won. I looked to Kate for a second opinion. In my little circle of friends, she was the one I always looked to for validation.

"It _would_ be fun," she said, reading my mind. "But I won't push you to do it."

"Thank you Katherine," I hugged her. I got up off the bed and stood in the middle of the room. "Demetria Didd, Katherine Kirkwood, Gwyneth Garret," I said, nodding to each in turn. "My dearest Ravenclaw girls, it seems we have a plan."

"Operation Black Attack is under way!" Kate screamed.

We all broke down in a fit of nervous giggles. It looked like something beautiful was underway. At that moment, I was willing to do whatever my friends suggested to bring Black down. We all stood up, staring at each other for a moment or two.

"It's lunch time," Demi said breaking the silence. "We can plot Black's Demise down there."

"Demise?" Kate questioned. "Don't you think that's taking it a bit too far?"

"Well," Demi sighed laughingly, "how about his ego's demise?"

"Well put," I said a little shocked that Demi had come up with it as we all emptied out of the dorms, into the Common Room, and eventually into the Great Hall. Once we were there, we took great care to find the most isolated spot on the Ravenclaw table. We usually sat at the spot by the head of the table that had traditionally been for sixth years, but we needed privacy. Gwyn ended up having to shoo several first years out of a spot near the end of the table.

"Alright, well how do we go about this?" I questioned, taking a sip of my tea. Since we had all met each other during our first year at Hogwarts, it had been our tradition to drink tea before every meal. It had actually helped keep us all trim. The tea calmed your stomach so that after a day or so of extreme hard word, you didn't blow it all away on as much fudge and pudding as you could stuff into your mouth. I, however, had taken the tradition farther, drinking coffee and tea several times each day. It had gone so far that I had received several never-emptying coffee and tea mugs for Christmas the prior year.

"We'll start by being civil to Black," Gwyn said excitedly. She was always one for elaborate plans like this. She loved being the leader of secret operations. I was sure that after Hogwarts, she would probably pursue a career in the Ministry's department of Mysteries.

"Then we'll build up to being friends with Lily Evans," Demi added. Apparently Gwyneth and Demetria had talked over this entire thing before letting me, the bait, in on it.

"Quite brilliant," Kate winked. "Everyone knows Potter's in love with her."

"Indeed," I giggled. "If I'm friends with Evans there's no doubt that I will constantly see Potter and Black." Alright, I have to admit, the part about seeing them constantly didn't sound so brilliant after all.

"Certainly; and of course," Gwyn shrugged, "you're already friends with Evans, you just need to elaborate on said friendship." Gwyn had detested Lily Evans since she proved one of Gwyn's theories wrong in an open assignment in Muggle Studies. Gwyn had also always held Kate and my friendship with Lily against us.

"And then?" I questioned after a moment or two of silence.

"We'll improvise and revise from there on," Gwyn said, waiving the subject aside. "Things never go according to plan around here."

"But the basic outline," Demi began after Gwyn busied herself with some rice, "is to gain Black's trust, and then blow it all on dating Severus."

"Something along those lines," Gwyn said, putting down her spoon. "Now hush, our subject is coming over here."

Demi took this as the queue to start a conversation completely unrelated to what we had been previously talking about.

"So then I told mother that I don't care what she says," Demi went on, sounding as if she had been talking about this subject the entire length of lunch. "I'm not following in father's footsteps; I'm the first in my family to not be sorted into Slytherin."

"Obviously," Gwyn said, "you're the first witty person in your family," Kate and I both snorted, causing Gwyn to give us a wicked look, "if you don't mind me saying so."

"Why should she?" I said. "It's not your fault if you've got a future more than that silly robe shop ahead of you!" I inwardly thanked God for Kate keeping her mouth shut. If she had said anything, she would've blown our cover. Poor girl, she was completely incapable of lying or acting.

"Eden," I heard Black's voice coming from behind me. Gwyn and I made eye-contact and it seemed as if I could read her thoughts. She was warning me to be sweet.

"Yes, Sirius?" I smiled sweetly, turning around to face him. It was the first time I had called him by his first name.

"I trust that if you run into Peter here," he slapped the boy on his back, "Hypothetically speaking of course, you won't feel the need to deduct points?"

I wanted to strangle him. How dare he assume that he was above the law? I felt Kate's hand squeeze my arm, bringing me back to reality. I took a deep breath, putting on my best impression of Abarella Abbott, the Gryffindor most commonly called The Class Ditz.

"Of course not!" I said, making sure my voice was laced with sweetness. "I wouldn't dream of it! The only reason I deducted points last night was because he caught me off guard, I was so afraid!" I was doing everything I could to appeal to his chauvinistic side. Years of dealing with strict wizards at Salem's Summer Institute for Young Witches and Wizards had left me a better liar than I wished to be. I made a Note to Self to invite Kate over one of these years, she could definitely use the training.

"Besides," Gwyn added, "it's not as if he's a Slytherin. He's a Gryffindor for Merlin's sake! We should be glad the likes of him are patrolling the halls as well!" I did everything I could to not laugh at what Gwyn had said. The sarcasm in it was extremely obvious to anyone who had known her long enough, however, Black, being tremendously dim noticed no such thing.

"Yes, and Peter?" Demi said, "Elizabeth is awfully sorry that she ever deducted points from you! Why, you should've heard her when she came in that night. Gwyn and I had to cheer her up, she was so close to crying." I bit the insides of my cheek to keep from laughing. Kate, on the other hand, had given in to temptation. She began laughing, quickly covering it up by feigning a cough.

Black didn't seem to be buying the last lie. It had apparently been a bit much. He cocked his eyebrow at me, daring me to agree with Demetria.

"It's true, you know," I said tragically at his disbelieving look, "Sirius Black, are you calling me a liar?"

"No," he said slowly, his face softening. "You just seem to have changed since this morning."

"Well, people do change, Sirius," Gwyn said. She then turned to Demi and Kate and began talking about something completely unrelated to Black or Pettigrew. That had always been Gwyn's way of dismissing someone.

"Well then," Black turned to me, seeming rather confused. "I'm glad we understand each other, Eden."

"Me too," I smiled batting my eyelashes. "I'm sorry about the misunderstanding last night."

"Don't mention it," he said. It sounded more like a question than a statement. We all practically held our breath until he exited the Great Hall. However, as soon as he was gone, we could hold it no longer. We all began laughing simultaneously, my cackle overpowering their laughter.

"I'm glad we understand each other, Eden," Kate said in her best impression of the hulking Gryffindor.

"I am the Queen of acting," I laughed, snorting at the end. My sides were beginning to ache. "I think I have renewed faith. Messing with Black's head is just too much fun to pass up."

"I'm glad you see it my way," Gwyn winked.

"That was the most fun I've had in ages," Kate said. "Hoodwinking Black should be just as fun as bringing his ego down to size."

"He looked so confused at the end," Demi said, "almost as confused as he looked when he was taking his O.W.L.'s."

"The intense look of concentration and bafflement was nearly too much to handle," I sighed, remembering the look on Black's face last year. His desk had been near to mine, and I had had to bite my cheeks raw to keep from laughing at him. He had tangled his hand in his hair in his attempts to somehow dig up an answer from his dull mind.

"Whatever he did must have worked," Kate shrugged. "Apparently he did very well on his O.W.L.'s."

"Wait, so he's not an idiot?" I asked. They all looked at me, shaking their head no. "When did this happen?"

"He was never _dim_," Kate said, going back to eating.

"We just see him as that way because he's," Gwyn took a moment to think of the right word, "Socially impaired." We all went back to eating. The rest of our day was rather undisturbed.

"Are you ready for classes tomorrow?" Kate asked as we pushed our way out of the Common Room to fulfill our dastardly Prefect duties.

"Oh God, no," I said, suddenly remembering that the weekend was over. "With my luck I'll have nearly all my classes with Black."

"Yes," Kate giggled, "I rather think Dumbledore enjoys torturing you." It had become so annoying and evident that after finding out in fourth year that all my classes were with Black and Potter _again_, I had gone to see the Headmaster. He had reassured me that the schedules were completely based on who wanted to take what, and since Ravenclaw and Gryffindor had always gotten along, nearly all our classes had been together since the start of Hogwarts. I had returned to my dormitory a little depressed that night.

"Well, I'll see you in an hour," I sighed, taking a shortcut to the third floor.

As I paced the third floor relentlessly, I started reciting to myself the names of the moons of all the planets in our galaxy. Astronomy had always been my worst subject. I still received an Outstanding, but I actually had to work for it. The hour went by rather quickly. Kate and I joined each other at the bottom of the staircase and began walking to the Ravenclaw Commons.

"I'm actually surprised Black's little friend didn't jump out at you again," Kate said as we climbed in through the portrait hole. "I was sure he'd want to test your new attitude."

"Me too, actually," I yawned. "However, I'm glad he didn't. Seeing Black once a day is quite enough." When we got to the dorm, Gwyn and Demi were already sleeping which was quite unlike them.

"Goodnight Katherine," I said, changing into my pajamas.

"I'm in shock, Elizabeth," Kate said, climbing into her bed. "You're going to bed before midnight." That was precisely why I drank as much coffee and tea as I did.

"I know, isn't it shocking?" I climbed beneath my covers, snuggling into bed. "I need all the rest I can get; we have Double Potions first thing tomorrow in case you forgot."

"Here's hoping Black isn't there," she laughed.

"Oh my, Katherine," I said, turning to find a comfortable position. "Do you really think the Lord almighty loves me _that_ much?"

"Not really."

* * *

The next morning, I was up and dressed before the rest of the girls. Call me a nerd, call me what you want but nothing got my day started like Potions. Not only was the class easiest for me, but Slughorn was one of my favorite teachers. Watching him suffer was practically my favorite hobby. 

"You seem extremely chipper this morning," Kate remarked at breakfast. Hmm. Maybe she wasn't quite as oblivious as I thought with her nose in a book. Demi and Gwyn, having Divination together, had already left to help Professor Trelawney set up for the year's first lesson, which by tradition had to be extremely overdramatic. Hence, I was alone with Kate, again. Our group needed to really reunite.

"I'm just excited for Operation Black Attack," I shrugged, taking another sip of my hot tea. What a shame, a caffeine addict at such a young age.

"You seem to be getting some sort of sick satisfaction out of this," she said, giving me a questioning look.

"Aren't we all?" I said, giving her my best fake smile.

"Let's go, Pageant Girl," she sighed, slamming her book shut and standing up. "I don't want to be late on my first day."

"Way to go, Katherine," I snorted as we reached the dungeons. "Due to your blind ambition, we're here early."

"Have you ever been early for a class before?"

"Of course not," I sighed. "I'm witty, not nerdy. Ravenclaw here, not Hufflepuff." This, of course, ended in Brandon Bones, and Susan Smith giving me a dirty look. What's more is that the golden Hufflepuff couple was there—Amor Diggory, and Marilyn Mercer.

"Do you think they could possibly do that in private?" Kate asked after watching them attempt to suck each other's faces off.

"I don't know," I replied, covering my mouth. "But I think I might throw up."

"Poor Diggory," Kate sighed.

"Poor Mercer."

Finally, after a few more minutes of visual suffering, Professor Slughorn arrived. He shooed Marilyn Mercer off to whatever class she was actually supposed to be in, and I inwardly thanked the gracious lord. It seemed as if the lord was acting in my favor lately.

"Sorry, sorry," he said, attempting to dodge around us all and to the front of the classroom. "I had business to attend to with the Headmaster." He then took a look around the room as the Gryffindors finally began to enter. "My, my. I've never seen such a large Double Potions class before. This should be interesting."

I took a look around me. He was right. There were three members of every house, summing up to a grand total of twelve, an impressive number for such a treacherous class. As usual, the houses split up, everyone sitting with members of their house.

"Hi, girls," Hayden Heathers smiled, walking towards us. He swept his brown hair out of his green eyes. For a moment there, I almost wished the rumors about us had been true.

"'Ello Hayden," I greeted. "Ready to mix some ingredients together?"

"I wish," he snorted, taking a seat between Kate and me. "Slughorn's got to show off first."

"He does have quite the superiority complex," Kate added.

"Now, now, students, pay attention. I know you're all ready for a wonderful year of potions in this glorious dungeon, with I, the infamous Slughorn as your teacher but bear with me for a few moments as I fill you in on the differences between regular Potions and this class," Slughorn said, already putting me to sleep with his monotonous bragging. I found that a few moments of listening to his Self-Important drabble was more than enough.

I began searching the room, looking to see who all was here. There was, of course, the aforementioned Hufflepuffs. From Slytherin, there was Severus Snape (of course), Peter Parkinson who always looked like he was attempting to balance something on his snobby little chin, and finally, the dumbest brute of them all: Caroline Crabbe. With the I.Q. and manners of a troll (she had once almost killed me by sitting on me on 'accident'), I had no idea how she had made it so far in such a complex subject.

From Gryffindor there was Lily Evans, James Potter who was drooling over Lily Evans, and of course, the guest of honor, Sirius Black. Black was balancing on the back legs of his chair, his arms crossed over his chest with a sort of informal grace. He was staring at Slughorn, a playful smile on his face, looking just interested enough to get by. Must. Not. Get. Sucked. Into. Beautiful. Gray. Eyes.

"Ms. Eden?" Slughorn said as Hayden elbowed me in the side.

"Yes, Professor?" I said, stomping on Hayden's foot. I would with no doubt have a bruise tomorrow.

"I was wondering how you felt about the potions we've been discussing."

"Well," I said, searching the board for a sign of what the hell he was talking about. Great, clean board. No matter, I was always good at improvising. "It depends on the situation the potion is used in."

"Really?" He asked, seeming a bit confused. "Could you please elaborate?"

"Well," I said, feeling my heart speeding up. I could hear Hayden Heathers attempt to keep in his laughter. "Let's say the situation drastically called for attention, and said potion was the only way to go."

"So what you're saying," Black spoke up, "is that it's okay to use a love potion to delude some fool into falling in love with you if you really want him to?" I felt my face heat up.

"Well, no," I said, mumbling my words.

"Well then, Eden, what _are_ you saying?" He questioned, cocking an eyebrow at me. Dear Lord. This is why you never show kindness towards boys like Black; it makes no difference to them.

"What I'm saying is," I searched blindly for an answer, "if he has something you want, or need, like something that could save a loved one, it's okay to use Love Potions." It sounded morally corrupt to my own ears.

"Hence," Black said, musing the idea, "it's okay to manipulate people?"

"That's not what she said, Black," Katherine spoke up, finally coming to my rescue.

"Students!" Slughorn billowed. "Enough bantering, stay on topic please!"

"It's alright, Eden," Black winked. "If you ever need _any_thing from me, feel free to just ask. I'm more than willing to be manipulated." The class burst out in laughter, causing my face to go a shade of crimson I hadn't thought possible. I had no idea I had that much blood in my body.

"Alright!" Slughorn thundered. "That's enough! I'm deducting points from the next person to stray off topic!"

"Well, Elizabeth," Kate said as she walked me to my next class. "That was a beautiful show of social elegance."

"Katherine," I warned, "Be quiet or I will be forced to turn you into a ferret."

"How fitting," she smiled as we took our seats in Transfiguration.

As Professor McGonagall began lecturing us on the proper uses of Transfiguration, I completely tuned out and remained that way until Kate and I were done with classes. I had been right. I had every single class with Black so far. Luckily, I also had Kate, Gwyn and Demi to share my pain. For the most part, we all had similar schedules. As I sat there, pondering the meaning of life (and the suffering synonymous to it), I found myself sitting with the girls at dinner.

"So, Elizabeth," Gwyn said, wearing a rather horrendous smile, "Katherine here is telling us you had quite the adventure in Potions." I looked behind me, casting a rather angry look at the Gryffindor table; however, I couldn't find him.

"Unfortunately," I growled, causing Kate to look up and close the book she had been reading.

"What exactly did he say?" Gwyn asked, tearing her roll to pieces in her hands. She seemed to be getting some odd pleasure out of my discomfort.

"The deluded little womanizer decided to embarrass me in front of our entire potions class," I said bitterly, taking a sip of my tea. As I waited for a reply, I contemplated to myself when and how you'd know whether you're drinking too much tea. I was pretty sure I could find a spell for it if I spoke with Professor Flitwick, our head of house.

"Elizabeth!" Gwyn said sharply. "Are you paying attention?"

"Attempting to," I shrugged.

"Try harder," she snarled. "Look alive, Evans is coming."

"Evans?" Demi questioned, always siding with Gwyn. "What in the world could she want?"

"I don't know, probably wants to correct our posture," Gwyn snarled, "or to deduct points for improper eating."

"Dear lord, what could _she_ want?" Kate sighed, closing the book she had been reading.

"She's probably here on behalf of Black to solicit sex," Demi said, causing us all to glare at her with a questioning look. "Hey, it could happen."

"But you said probably," I said, "implying that the idea was probable and thus, likely. Hence, you saying that it _could_ happen is a complete counterpoint to the original statement."

"What?" She said, staring at me vacantly.

"Seriously Demetria," Kate sighed, "you are quite possibly the dimmest Ravenclaw I know." Kate re-opened her book, deciding that the current conversation was not as worthy as whatever Muggle book she was reading this week.

"Kate!" Gwyn snapped. "Shut up. Now back to what I was saying about the seasons…" Considering that she had been saying nothing about the seasons, I took this as the signal that Lily had descended upon us.

"Elizabeth," She said, tapping my shoulder.

"Yes?" I asked, whirling around to face her.

"I was wondering if you wanted to go for a walk?" She asked. Her voice was unusually harsh.

"Of course," I swallowed. "Kate? Care to join me?"

"Sure," Kate shrugged. "I could use a walk to clear my head of all this foolishness." As soon as we got to the grounds, Lily began talking.

"I was talking with James Potter," She began.

"Talking or yelling?" Kate muttered.

"A bit of both, actually," Lily smiled. "Anyway, that's not the point. He began telling me about your deal with Black.."

"What deal?" I asked, a little bit alarmed. Had he deluded himself into thinking that I had offered to buy some of his solicited sex in Potions? I shook my head; I had to get Demi's mentality out of there.

"James said that you had promised to not deduct points if you caught Black out after hours," she said, giving me an irritated look.

"Lily," I reasoned, "I only said that to get Black to go away."

"We all say whatever possible to make Black go away," she said, making a loop and to walk back towards the castle. "My point is that what are you going to do if you _do_ catch him?"

"Let him off with a warning?" I questioned, looking at Kate for support.

"Elizabeth," Lily said, whirling around to glare at me at the foot of the castle. "I thought I could trust you. I can't trust you if you give Black special treatment."

"Lily," I gaped, "I would never give him special treatment."

"I should hope not," she snapped, walking inside.

"When did Dumbledore die and put her in charge?" Kate snorted.

"I don't know, but here's hoping she dies and we all sink into Anarchy."

* * *

A/N: Sorry about the lack of updates. I've been having some issues with the fam-damn-ily which have taken away from my writing time.Also, I won't have as much time to update after winter break, I'm currently in a production called Dirty Deeds Come Clean. Yeah, I'm a thespian. Anyway, please Read & Review, guys. Your interest keeps me interested. ;) 


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Salutations dear reader! Thank you for choosing this butchering of J. K. Rowling's beautiful story to read! It's quite bodacious of you.

GoTheDistance: Thank you for the groovy review! Here's hoping I keep you as a reader!

Keisha.cl: Thank you for the review! But they don't hate Lily! Well, Gwyn and Demi do but not Liz and Kate. It'll be explained more in depth in upcoming chapters. Thanks for reading!

xxvisionaryxx: Danke! Also, congrats on being my first reviewer to review twice! It means that we now have an unshakable bond stronger than that with my first reviewer! –evil laughter- Once again, thank you! I was just sitting there after writing chapter 2, and I decided that their little conversation at the end would be more than just a conversation.

In addition: Feel free to at any time make me aware of flaws in the plot, or whether you don't like where the story is headed!

I'm seriously going to stop using exclamations frequently now. This is starting to remind me of Seinfeld.

Side Note: I'm having a serious problem with the flow of the story. I read over it, and it seemed sort of choppy. Any tips on how to fix this? Thank you in advance!

* * *

"So what did she want?" Gwyn yelped as soon as Kate and I entered the Commons.

"She just asked about the 'special treatment' I promised Black," I sat down in my favorite chair beside the fire.

"Leave it to Evans to—" Gwyn began.

"No, Gwyn," Kate snapped. "Lily's right. Everyone knows she's going to be Head Girl next year. She was right to try and find out what's going on."

"Yeah," I nodded. "I would've done the same if I were in her place."

"Fine."

"Okay then," Kate gave Gwyn an odd look. "I'll take this as my queue to leave."

"Me too," I muttered, following Kate outside and to the library. We sat in silence for a while, each reading a book. As I read the third chapter of The Lesser Known Followers of the Dark Lord by Suzanne Skeeter, Kate slammed her book shut.

"What's going on?" I asked, barely looking up from the book. There was a picture of a few witches and wizards our age, darting out of the photograph. For a second I thought I recognized one of them…

"She just makes me so angry," Kate fumed. "She won't let go of the thing with Lily."

"You know Gwyn," I snorted, turning the page. "She can't stand being wrong."

"It's more than that," Kate dropped her voice to a barely audible whisper. "I think she's jealous of her." That caused me to finally look up from my book.

"Jealous of what?" I was almost afraid to ask. I knew the answer but I didn't want to know it—Gwyn was my friend. I always wanted to believe that she was pure, or at least reasonable.

"I think she's jealous of Evans because," Kate took a deep breath, "Potter likes her." We both sighed and looked away. This had been the first time since the beginning of our friendship that we had 'gossiped' about one of the members of our group.

"Am I wrong?" She questioned. "Just tell me I'm wrong and I'll drop it."

"No, I think you're right," I closed my book. "It's just that I don't want to talk about it."

"I understand," she nodded. "Honestly, neither do I." We both put our books back and ended up walking the castle in silence until it was time for our Prefect duties. One of the things that I really loved about Kate was how a silence was never uncomfortable with her. It was just an understanding that neither of us really wanted to talk. She could always pick up on others' moods and accommodated to them.

"Kate?" I questioned as she started walking to her floor. "Do you want to switch shifts for the night?"

"Brilliant idea," she started walking towards the staircase to the third floor instead. "I'll see you in an hour."

As I started walking the sixth floor, I was more than a little nervous. I hadn't patrolled this floor since early last year, before Kate and I had permanently switched. The switch had been the cause of the statues on this floor giving me the creeps. They were everywhere.

"Oh dear God," I heard someone mutter from behind me. I whirled around, wand in hand.

"Black?" I whispered, not wanting anyone else to find out he was there.

"Yes, Eden, what in the world are you doing here?" he stepped into a patch of moonlight coming through from the window.

"I'm a Prefect," I whispered back. "What the hell are _you_ doing here?"

"Well," he smiled, leaning against the wall, "seeing as how you were supposed to be patrolling the third floor, I decided to take the sixth instead."

"Will you please do me a favor?" I was extremely nervous. I couldn't stop fidgeting with my clothes, and my hands were suddenly extremely sweaty.

"Like I said," he yawned, stretching out his body, "I'm more than willing to be manipulated.

"It's not that," I cleared my throat. He made me nervous. His entire group made me nervous. As much as I hated admitting it, Gwyn was right. He was practically Hogwarts Royalty. "Could you please not tell Potter about this?"

"About what exactly?" He crossed his arms over his chest, seeming extremely amused by my tension.

"Me catching you," that seemed to only confuse him further. "He'll just tell Evans, and Evans will have my head." He laughed softly, continuing to stare at me as if he couldn't hear a word coming out of my mouth.

"You're not deducting points?"

"I told you I wouldn't," I sneered. I wished I hadn't made that promise, that Operation Black Attack wasn't real and I could just say to him whatever I pleased. However, I had a function to uphold!

"Alright," he took a moment, seeming to think everything over. "Under one condition," he gave me a mischievous smile, "stop acting differently in front of your friends."

"What?" I was completely caught off guard. My heart started racing as the thought of him knowing about Operation Black Attack entered my mind. He would no doubt torture me with it.

"You act like a ditz whenever I catch you with them," all the amusement had gone from his face. Now he just looked confused. "Promise me you'll be the same?" he jutted his hand out at me.

"I promise," I said, taking his hand and shaking on it. His skin was soft. I thought about asking what type of moisturizer he used but my heart was beating too loudly for me to hear over.

"Splendid," he smiled. "Lily won't hear a word." He turned around and sauntered away. He seemed extremely casual and self-assured. He looked as if he knew what he was doing; he always did. It was one reason why everyone always liked him. They just wanted someone to follow.

"Well, what happened?" We were back in the Dorms, and they had been questioning me since they first found out. Gwyn wanted to know every single detail of the encounter, even though there wasn't much to tell. Sirius Black avoided me for as long as possible, tonight was just another example. He had taken a different hallway to avoid me.

"He made me promise I wouldn't act stupid if he came up to me in front of you," I said, climbing into bed. I was too tired for this.

"Oh. Well did he say anything else?" Gwyn was a little let down that Black had blown our acting cover.

"No," I sighed. I had already told her the story about a million times. "Well what do you think we should do now?"

"Improvise and revise," Gwyn sighed. "We'll figure something out in charms."

"Goodnight girls," I sighed. "I'm exhausted."

Okay so I lied, so sue me. I just couldn't face them anymore. This year had been too weird. Last year was amazing; there was no rivalry, only laughter and good times. This year, it seemed like Demi and Gwyn had changed but Kate and I had remained the same. They were always going off together, leaving Kate and me alone. Our group was slowly separating, and I didn't know why.

* * *

I couldn't stop doodling on my mass of papers. I loved Flitwick, I really did, but dear lord, the man was quite hopeless when it came to public speaking. He was only really good at teaching the method. It was probably why he was a charms professor rather than something less stable, like Potions.

Gwyn passed a note to Kate, who scribbled something in it. Kate then passed the note to Hayden, who was used to being the messenger, and he passed it to me.

* * *

A/N: **Gwyn**

_Kate_

Demi

Liz

* * *

**Operation Black Attack is in danger. We need a new way to reel Black in.**

_We need to find out what kind of girl he's attracted to._

Well, that's fine, Katherine, but how do we go along with said plan?

Lily Evans

_I have a better idea…_

Kate, you mind sharing the aforementioned plan with us?

_Why don't we just carry on with the rest of the plan?_

Meaning?  
I think what Kate is saying is that we need to just befriend him.

**That way we'll find out first hand what he likes in a girl.**

_And make Liz into said girl._

Won't he find it suspicious? I mean, there he will be chatting us up about what kind of girl he's into and then just BAM, Liz becomes this girl?

**Merlin's pants, Demi, who exactly do you think Black is?**

_For the last time, he's not dim he's just socially inapt._

Agreed.

**Agreed.**

Agreed.

Thus, Demetria presents a good point.

_There's a first time for everything, I suppose._

**Fine, fine, fine. Kate, mind your manners. Everyone come up with a plan. **

Plan A: Befriend Lily, find out what type of girl Black likes.

_Plan B: Psychologically figure out what kind of girl Black likes._

**...Psychologically?**

It's a Muggle thing, it means using his subconscious likes and dislikes to determine the kind of girl he likes.

**Brilliant. Plan C: Befriend Potter, Black, Lupin & Pettigrew. Do not, repeat: do not, chat up Sirius about the type of girl he likes. Liz will become said girl.**

Plan D: Combine above three plans into super plan.

_Agreed._

**Agreed. **

Agreed.

One question, why am I the bait?

_You're willing to do whatever it takes to bring Black down._

**You're moldable, you are physically the type of girl Black goes for. **

You're a good liar.

New notion: Make Demetria bait.

_Disagreed._

Disagreed.

**Disagreed. Motion denied. **

At this point, Hayden grabbed up the note and set it on fire with a flick of his wand. He was apparently sick of not being included.

"You know, Hayden," I said, turning towards him, "there are males in this class."

"Speaking of which," Kate said, "do you have any male friends?"

"Why are you being so mean?" Hayden seemed a bit hurt. "Yes, I do have male friends. I'm sitting with one right now."

"Patrick Peters does **not** count as a friend," Kate hissed. Flitwick had finally looked towards our part of the classroom.

"He never says anything," Demi added.

"And if he did, I'm sure it wouldn't be interesting," Gwyn whispered as Flitwick turned towards the Slytherins.

"This is precisely why he doesn't say anything," Hayden said. "You ladies are cruel."

"Then why do you sit with us?" Kate snapped.

"Well, I do have to hold up appearances with my girlfriend here," he said, nudging me.

"If you started that rumor…" I began.

"We'll have your head," Demi added, she seemed a bit more angry than the situation called for. However, she was always there to add insults whenever I was dumbfounded. Secretly, that was why I had always thought we kept her around.

"I didn't start the rumor," he smiled, "doesn't mean I can't enjoy it."

"Whatever," I muttered, crossing my arms over my chest.

"And I'll have you know she's _also_ dating Snape!" Kate replied. With that, we all turned away from him and for the first time throughout the lesson, towards Flitwick.

"What'd I do?" Hayden moaned.

"Ladies!" Flitwick screeched, finally realizing the conversation going on right behind him. "Silence, please!"

"With all due respect, Professor," Gwyn said, "Mr. Heathers was doing most of the talking."

"My apologies, Ms. Garret," Flitwick smiled.

"It's alright professor," James Potter laughed, combing his hair with his hand and causing it to be even messier.

"Yes, he _does_ have quite a feminine voice," Black smiled, causing the males in the class to snicker, and Hayden to deepen to a dark red.

* * *

"Don't worry Hayden," Demi said, squeezing his arm as he walked us to the Great Hall. "You do have a deep voice."

"Yes, you are oozing with masculinity," I took a hold of his other arm. We were walking to lunch, and doing all we could to boost Hayden's self esteem. If it had been anybody but Sirius Black and James Potter, it wouldn't have mattered to us.

However, this year, they were our targets, and thus everything they said had to be false. Besides, I rather liked Hayden. Like Demi, he was the first in his family to not be sorted into Slytherin. It had actually been quite a shock, what with anyone with literally a drop of Heathers blood in their body being sorted into the house. His family had a reputation for being extremely prejudiced against Muggle-Borns and Half-Bloods, but Hayden was nothing but perfectly pleasant to everyone.

"You, my friend, are the sheer image of testosterone," Kate said when she finally caught up to us. She had forgotten her book and had had to go back.

"Yes, a Bronze God," Gwyn said, leading us into the Great Hall.

"Right, and I'm the Pope," Sirius Black snickered, cutting in front of us and walking to the Gryffindor table.

"Well, your Holiness," I called out after him, "you of all people should know not to eavesdrop!"

"My child, when such lies are being told, one has no choice," He replied without so much as turning around to face us.

"You're just mad because we kicked your arrogant arse in Quidditch last year!" Hayden had finally regained enough confidence to speak. However, it did no good. Black just flipped us off as he sat down.

"What is his problem?" I hissed, taking my usual spot opposite Gwyn and Demi while giving Black an evil look.

"He's just doing what we thought he would," Demi shrugged.

"He's testing you," Kate added. "He wants to make sure you're still reacting the same way."

"Well if he tests me one more time I might just have to use a hair loss curse on him."

"OH, baldness!" Gwyn yelped sarcastically. "Shield me, I don't want to _die_!"

"Liz has a good point," Kate said, shoving a cupcake in her mouth. "Without his hair he'd lose his confidence."

"Let's make that a part of Operation Black Attack," Demi wrote down the point on a notebook she had been writing all our plans in. "Sabotage Hair."

"What are you girls talking about?" Hayden seemed thoroughly confused. I was pretty sure we had all forgotten he was still there.

"Nothing!" Demi said, slamming shut the notebook she had been writing in.

"No, I'm serious," Hayden dropped his voice a few octaves, "if it has anything with bringing Black down I'm all for it."

"Well, grasshopper," Gwyn smiled at him, "we shan't tell you anything now, but we might need your help one day, and then, you will know."

"Fantastic," Hayden gave me a dazzling smile. "I'm sick of his Holier Than Thou attitude."

"It's more of a More Attractive Than Thou attitude," Kate snickered, causing us to giggle.

* * *

"Third floor or Sixth?" Kate asked me as we started walking towards the staircase.

"I really have no idea," I shrugged. "I think I'm going to take third, just in case Black wants to avoid me again."

"Unless he thinks you'll be on the Sixth floor, and thus takes Third," Kate said, seeming as confused as I felt.

"I don't know, which one do you want?"

"I've always had sixth, and I know how you feel about the statues," she smiled.

"Fantastic, I'll see you in an hour!" I called out as I started walking towards the branch of the staircase which led to my floor.

As I walked the hall over and over again, I made a note to be more aware. Black had managed to take away my spacing-out time by scaring me whenever the opportunity presented itself.

"Miss!" a shrill voice called from behind me. It sounded too feminine to be Black.

"Yes?" I turned around, wand in hand. She was most certainly an adult, which was a cause for alert and ease simultaneously.

"Could you please escort me to the Headmaster's office?" The lady asked, walking towards me. She had long black hair, and would have been quite beautiful if her face didn't look like she was disgusted all the time.

"Of course," I nodded. Any European Witch could tell you where Dumbledore's office was, but only Hogwarts Prefects and Teachers knew the password. We Prefects had to have them memorized because those that actually enforced the rules ended up having to see the Headmaster quite frequently.

"Your name is?" she asked as we started walking towards the Second Floor.

"Elizabeth Eden," I smiled, doing my best to sound friendly despite her complete lack of social etiquette.

"Ah, an Eden," she smiled a toothy grin which rather made her look like a wolf. "Your blood line is quite pure."

"Quite," I said, not knowing what else to say.

"It is always nice to meet someone of worthy heritage," she stuck out her bony hand at me. "You may call me Mrs. Black." It actually took some self control to keep from gawking at her. So this was the infamously heartless Mrs. Black? And furthermore, could I go _one _day without being annoyed by someone somehow related to Sirius?

"Right," I said, coming to a stop in front of the Gargoyle. "Chocolate Frogs," I said to the statue, causing it to open up to emit Mrs. Black.

"Would you like an escort to the Headmaster's office, Madam?" I was doing my best to seem friendly so she wouldn't feel the need to deteriorate my family.

"No, it's quite alright." She gave me another snobby grin. "However, it is nice to see that the likes of yourself, and not a filthy Mud-Blood, are guarding the halls of Hogwarts." I gave her an uneasy smile before running down the hall and back to the third floor.

As I restlessly walked the halls, I couldn't help but think over and over again about what she had said. I had always known that the Blacks were big on heritage, but Sirius Black's mother had seemed almost…prejudiced. I couldn't help but think that that was were Black _got_ his Holier Than Thou attitude. Growing up in a household like that would make it difficult to remain level headed.

"Well, Mrs. Black," I heard Dumbledore's voice coming down the hall, "I understand that said actions have left you displeased, but I cannot fulfill your wishes."

I looked down at my watch. My shift had been over a few minutes ago, but I had lost track of time. Somehow, I _knew_ I wasn't supposed to be listening to this conversation. I ducked behind one of the few statues in the hall and waited. I listened to their footsteps getting closer, doing my best not to eavesdrop.

"Headmaster Dumbledore, I have no idea why you wish to continuously protect the boy," Mrs. Black said, her shrill voice sounding disgusted and displeased.

"With all due respect," the Headmaster spoke, a ring of laughter entwined in his voice, "He is the first of his family to not be sorted into Slytherin, and he is not like the rest and thus deserves protection."

"Well," Mrs. Black was close to shouting, "I, as a concerned adult, would find it reasonable if he were expelled!" They had passed me at this point and were walking towards the end of the hall. I began slowly walking to the staircase.

"I will not cut off a young man's last resorts," Dumbledore sounded stern now. "Nor will I expel someone who needs a home now more than ever." I was at the staircase now, and didn't want to hear anymore. I ran full strength until I was inside the Ravenclaw Commons. Kate had left without me.

I didn't wait to talk to any of the girls, or to even tell Kate what had happened. I wasn't ready to even admit I had heard anything. I changed into my pajamas as quickly as I could, and got into bed, wrapping myself up in my covers. I was extremely irritated and had no desire to talk. I just wanted to think. The entire night, I kept asking myself how Black's mother had had the nerve to attempt to get Hayden Heathers expelled.

* * *

A/N: Dun dun dunnn! I think it's an amazing place to stop. I hope you've enjoyed reading the story so far, and like the plot. If you don't, please tell me whatever you find faulty with it. I hope you got whom Mrs. Black was _really_ talking about. Anyway, I am done for today! Read _**and**_ review, please! 


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Totally forgot to wish you a happy new year, so uh, I hope your new year is going by happily and that you're keeping your resolutions! I'm actually keeping mine, which is surprising. To all the new readers who've added the story to their alerts lists, thank you. You're all amazing for taking the time to read this!

xxvisionaryxx: Thank you! I doubt any girl on this planet has a single completely healthy friendship with another girl.

GoTheDistance: Aww, thank you very much.

Won-Won-Weirdo: FINALLY! I've been waiting from a review from you for ages!

Your reviews make my day! ;) Great, now I've got the smiley plague. I think I'm going to be writing this on Sunday, anyway. I've sort of given up on the novel for the time being.

**The Following Side Note Contains Spoilers**

**But seriously, what kind of self respecting fan hasn't finished the series yet?**

Side Note: I cried when Sirius died, possibly more than I cried when Dumbledore died. By the end of DH I was waiting for Rowling to kill off Harry, seeing as how she had taken away everyone I've loved.

OMG super long chapter! (1000 more words than chap 4)

* * *

I looked behind me, checking to see if Black was at the Gryffindor table. He wasn't. Neither was Lupin. In fact, I hadn't seen Lupin since school had started. Pettigrew and Potter were over at the table, both looking extremely anxious and worried.

"What's wrong?" Kate asked, closing her book to look at me. I continuously stirred my cup of tea although I hadn't added anything to it.

"Nothing," I had woken up in a rather sour mood. I was concentrating hard on the leaves floating in my tea. I had actually been lucky. Since Demi and Gwyn always left early for Divination, I had two less people to deal with.

"Then why aren't you talking? Why don't you look at me?" She asked, putting her book in her bag. Wow. This was a first. "Stop the stupidity, please. You haven't said anything since before our shifts last night."

"Katherine," I said, looking up from my cup of tea and at her brilliant blue eyes, "just because I don't feel the need to smile throughout the day and make an arse out of myself repeatedly doesn't mean something's wrong."

"Right," Kate snorted. This was when she usually returned to her book, but this time she continued to stare at me, waiting. "Anything more?"

"What's more is," I said, putting my things in my bag and leaving the table, "I don't feel like talking, since when I talk I sound rather stupid. Pardon me if I want to keep my stupidity to myself."

"You're being unreasonable," Kate said, sounding calm. She always kept calm in the middle of a conflict. I hated it. It made her seem completely apathetic.

"Kate, have you ever had one of those days where everything crashes down on you and you're sad for no reason?" I waited for her to nod. "Well, this is one of those days." I left the table, walking to Potions alone. I knew I had wrongfully taken things out on Kate, but at the moment, I didn't care. I really needed to be alone.

I had arrived at Potions even earlier than I had when I first had the class. There was only one person waiting by the Dungeons this time. I really couldn't tell who it was, seeing as how he was leaning against the wall, his face buried in his arms. His elbows were resting on his knees and he seemed to be slowly shaking. I continued to look, trying to figure out who it was.

"Eden, for the love of God, could you stop staring at me?" right, it was Black. Who else? I didn't bother replying and instead began examining the bricks behind me, turning my back to Black.

"It's rather rude to intrude on personal moments," he said from behind me. He sounded a lot closer than I had anticipated. However, I had managed to not jump. These days, I was always on High Alert around him.

"It's also rather rude to get your parents involved in a personal struggle," I said, barely audible.

"What?" Now he was right beside me, slightly in front of me. I could feel his grey, reflective eyes staring into mine, trying to get me to make eye-contact. Alright, I'll admit, going to class half an hour early was a rather stupid idea. I hadn't anticipated Black being there seeing as how he's always half an hour late.

"Nothing," I whispered, turning slightly away from him. I didn't want to confront him, I had always hated confrontations. One of the reasons I never told Gwyn how I felt was because I couldn't stand being honest with her.

"No, tell me what you said," he crossed his arms over his chest. His entire body seemed tense. I concentrated on him out of my peripheral vision. He looked rather angry, which was unusual. I had never seen him anything other than completely relaxed, even when he was thoroughly and utterly confused.

"I met your mother last night," I said, concentrating on a chipped brick. I concentrated just hard enough to miss out on his reaction, but I could feel his body get even more apprehensive. There was a great amount of tension in the air. I was starting to find it hard to breathe. This was why I never said what I meant, or meant what I said.

"And?" He asked, getting in front of me again. It was as if he was trying to dominate me. "What did she say?" I was about to tell him everything, tell him how he had no right to do what he had done, but people began arriving for the class. Among the first was Hayden, and upon seeing him, I crossed the room, going to stand by his side. Black looked more confused than ever.

I risked looking at him. I was right, he was staring back at me. He looked extremely frustrated. I smirked to myself. He was probably mad that he couldn't get what he wanted. However, the deep dark circles beneath his eyes seemed to suggest otherwise.

As soon as class began, Slughorn had us pair up into twos. We were preparing a simple review potion. Kate and I worked together, causing Hayden to work with Amor Diggory. Hayden looked unhappy with the partnering. Diggory looked about ready to kill Hayden and began questioning him immediately when Slughorn left us to do our work.

"Is that really it?" Kate asked after five minutes.

"Yep," I nodded, sitting on a desk. "You just have to add the crushed rosemary after it's been boiling for about ten or fifteen minutes." There was an uneasy silence. "I'm sorry about what happened at breakfast."

"Don't worry about it," she shrugged. "We all have our days." At this moment, James Potter crossed the room and went behind us to the cupboard where Slughorn usually kept his extra ingredients.

"Do you know where Lupin is?" I asked, being reminded of his absence by Potter's presence.

"You seriously haven't figured it out?" She said, giving me a shocked look.

"Should I?" I asked. Had I missed something in the Daily Prophet?

"Think about it, he's absent about every twenty-eight days," she waited for me to comprehend, where upon I gave her a confused look. "You know, about around every full moon?"

"God," I gasped, slapping my hands over my mouth. "You don't mean he's a werewolf?" I heard Potter slam his head against a cupboard behind us. I had whispered as low as I possibly could, but I was pretty sure Potter had heard us.

"Yea," Kate mouthed, nodding. She bit her lip and motioned at Potter behind me, mouthing "Don't say a word." As she did this, Potter nearly ran across the room and to Black, where he scribbled a note. Black upon reading the note looked up and gawked at us.

"So it's true," I said slowly. Kate shrugged, adding the handful of Rosemary. I took this to be her queue to stop talking about the subject. She was right, it wasn't a big deal. It wasn't like they let him roam the halls when he was in his morphed stage.. Or at least I hoped they didn't. I sat at the table, putting my head on my arms and closing my eyes. I had gotten nearly no sleep the night before.

"Liz," Kate said, shaking me awake. "Liz, wake up. Please. Liz, _please_ wake up." It was her frantic tone that was my first clue of an emergency at hand. I woke up, brushing my hair out of my face and looking up at her. She was looking across the room, seeming rather worried. I followed her gaze to find Potter and Black stalking towards us.

"Slughorn dismissed the class early," she whispered. "And I think you know what they want to talk to us about."

"Lupin?" I asked, waiting for her to nod. I wiped at the corners of my eyes. I had a tendency to cry when I slept. I stood up, sitting on the desk again.

"What you said about Remus isn't true," Potter said, taking turns to glare at each of us. "And if it were, there's no reason for you to tell anyone."

"Because if you were to do so," Black said, glaring only at me, "I would have to make your life hell." I had a feeling the last part was a personal message for me only.

"We would never," Kate broke in, picking up on the tension between Black and me.

"It's not as if it's a choice," I spat, returning Black's intense eye contact. "Or as if it's a problem." I could feel Potter's body relax at my words. Black, on the other hand, remained on edge.

"Hypothetically speaking," Kate said, giving Potter a smile. "Because it's not as if it's true."

"Of course not," Potter laughed.

"So we have an understanding?" Black snarled. He looked as if he were attempting to set me on fire with his glare.

"I don't know why we should seeing as how there is nothing to understand," I retorted. As much as I wanted to despise him, I was more confused than ever. If he and his mother were such elitists, why was he friends with a werewolf?

"Let's say there was," he said, sounding extremely mad. He was in intense contrast to Potter, who was relaxed. Black looked as if he were about to pounce on me.

"Hypothetically speaking, of course," Potter added, causing Kate to laugh.

"Then yes, we have an understanding," I broke my staring contest with Black to look at Potter and give him my best smile.

"It's nice to know some people in this world are still understanding," Potter said, returning my smile with one of his own.

"Right," Black said, giving a bark-like laugh. "Elizabeth Eden is definitely one for understanding." The sarcasm was dripping from his voice. However, I decided to pay him no mind and instead gathered my things, leaving the room with Kate.

"Is it just me or does Black hate us?" she muttered. Potter and Black were right behind us, seeing as how they both had the same class.

"By us you mean me, right?" I asked. "I kind of had a little chat with him earlier today." As Kate and I walked to Transfiguration, I quickly filled her in on what had happened the night before, and my little chat with Black this morning.

"You shouldn't jump to conclusions," she said sternly as we sat down in class. "It could've been a misunderstanding."

"Right." I snorted, sitting down and spacing out until I received a note in the middle of class. I quickly looked over the note, I couldn't recognize the handwriting. I looked to Kate, giving her my best confused look. She looked at the note, and then cast a look at Sirius Black he who was watching me.

"Oh," I mouthed, continuing to stare at Black. He gave me a sarcastic smile, motioning at the note. I sighed, mentally preparing myself for the abuse the note no doubt contained.

Eden,

I haven't the slightest clue why you feel the mighty need to always appear so extremely uptight and depressed. Do you get off on mystifying people with your extreme stupidity and indirectness?

Sincerely, SRB

I glared at him as soon as I was through reading the note. Kate sighed, telling from my expression that the rest of class would consist of an all out note war between Black and me.

Black,

I'm only depressed when you're around. No, I don't, do you?

XOXO, Liz E.

P.S: Do you also get off on involving your parents in everything possible?

I watched his expression as he read the note. First he seemed confused, and then went back to being frustrated. He scribbled something quickly on the parchment, passing it to Potter.

Liz (May I call you Liz?),

No, I don't get off on either of those things. XOXO? Do you wish to snog? If so, I would love to get off on that.

Sincerely, SRB

I looked up gawking at him, and as soon as McGonagall turned away, flipping him the bird.

Black,

That's Ms. Eden to you. I would rather snog a frog than you. Keep it in your pants, it's just how I sign letters. Furthermore, leave me alone.

XOXO, Liz E.

He actually laughed this time when he read the note.

Lizzie,

I'm a much better snog than any reptile, just ask any other girl in our year. I'm not leaving you alone until you explain what you meant this morning before Potions.

Sincerely, SRB

I showed Kate the note, who burst out laughing, earning us a severe look from McGonagall. Gwyn, however, looked completely betrayed that we were having inside jokes without including her.

Black,

Call me that again and die. Frogs are amphibians, not reptilians. While I'm asking the girls, should I ask the boys too? I'm sure you've snogged Potter a few million times. Does Lily know?

XOXO, Liz E.

This time, as Potter read the note over Black's shoulder, he looked up at me, giving me an utterly betrayed look.

Lizzie E. (get it?),

I've never snogged Potter.

Sincerely, SRB

P.S: Let's say I were to snog Potter; would you like to watch?

I bit the inside of my cheeks to keep from laughing out loud. I really didn't want McGonagall to deduct points.

Black,

No. Leave me alone.

XOXO, Ms. Eden

Black sighed, reading my short note.

Ms. Eden,

If you would tell me what my lovely mother said, I would be more than willing to leave you alone. Seeing as how you will not comply with the aforementioned plan, I find your intentions questionable. You enjoy having me around, don't you?

Sincerely, SRB

I felt myself blush as I read the note.

Black,

No, you completely, thoroughly and utterly disgust me. Your mother was attempting to get Hayden Heathers expelled.

XOXO, Liz E.

This time when Black read the note, he looked even more confused than I had originally thought. His confusion puzzled me. If his mum hadn't been there on his account, why had she been there?

Liz,

Tell me what she said. Please.

Sincerely, SRB

I was even more in shock and confused now. Sirius Black never said please. Maybe Kate had been right.

Sirius,

She was talking about how Hayden deserved to be expelled because of some action. She said she didn't understand why Dumbledore felt the need to protect Hayden. Dumbledore said something about Hayden needing Hogwarts now more than ever that he was the first in his family to not be sorted into Slytherin.

XOXO, Liz E.

Black's face completely fell as he read the note. He showed the note to Potter as he caught my eye and gave me a fake smile before quickly looking away. Potter looked up after reading the note. Black sighed, mouthing "Should I?" to which Potter replied with a shrug. Black turned the piece of parchment over and began scribbling something down. His answer was pretty lengthy seeing as how it took him a few moments to write it down.

He passed it to Potter who was about to pass it to Brandon Bones when McGonagall yanked the piece of paper from his hand. She set fire to it as she went on a lecture about how paying attention to the theory of Transfiguration was important in order to handle the Transfigurations we would be doing this year. Black sighed, putting his head down in his arms. Kate and I looked at each other, both shrugging.

* * *

Kate and I were in the Commons, resting before Astronomy. Seeing as how we didn't have enough energy, we had decided to take a nap until it got dark out and class begun. Neither of us knew what to make of Black's reaction today. Kate had lectured me on the importance of flirting with Black while I continued to stare at her as if she were revolting.

"Ms. Eden?" Flitwick squeaked, catching me off-guard. As a rule, the Head of House was never in the Commons unless there was great need for celebration or something terribly wrong.

"Yes, Professor?" I questioned, wondering to myself which of Filch's ridiculous rules I could possibly be breaking.

"The Headmaster has requested to see you tonight after your Prefect duties in his office," he gave me a worried glance. "I trust you know the password?"

"Chocolate Frogs," I said. "Professor, do you know what exactly he wishes to discuss?" My heart had decided to go into frantic mode as my mind ensured me I was getting expelled.

"I'm sure it's nothing too serious," Flitwick squeaked, reading my expression. "However, I do not know for sure."

"Oh shite," I muttered as soon as he was out of earshot.

"What have you done?" Kate asked about as stunned as I was.

"I haven't the slightest clue," I swallowed, feeling a gigantic lump grow in my throat. "Maybe Evans told him about the Black ordeal?"

"Lily isn't childish," Kate snorted. "She had a problem and she already talked to you about it, she wouldn't take it so far as to tell the headmaster."

"Well, what do you think it is?" I asked. Kate checked my pupils and veins.

"You're not on drugs," she continued to check my left arm, "nor a Death-Eater. To be quite honest, I haven't the slightest clue."

"I guess I'll just have to wait and see."

"I suppose so."

* * *

"Liz, wake up," Kate had had to shake me awake quite a few times during Astronomy. The little message from Dumbledore had been more than enough to scramble my nerves in such a way that I hadn't been able to get the nap I so needed.

"I'm so sorry," I said, waking up. I was supposed to be helping her fill out a chart, but so far, Kate had been doing all the work alone.

"It's okay," Kate said, looking behind her back at Professor Sinistra. "As long as the Professor doesn't see, you're fine."

"Thank you for understanding," I said, giving her my best smile. I looked around the room, we were among the last to still have the chart out.

"I'm almost done," Kate said, reading the look on my face.

"I'm glad Astronomy's your best subject," I laughed. "I am quite hopeless when it comes to things that involve memorization." Kate wrote down the position of the last planet she was supposed to be finding and turned in the chart.

"Don't look now," she whispered as she got her stuff together, "but Black is staring at you."

"Is it a good stare or a he wants to kill me one?" I was thoroughly concerned. Lately, it had seemed as if seeing my blood spill had been one of Black's personal goals.

"Hmm," Kate was taking a moment to ponder the question. "It's more of a I-need-to-talk-to-you stare."

"Should I go talk to him?"

"I'm afraid you'll kill him," Kate sighed. "Think of Operation Black Attack."

"Should I go talk to him?" I asked again, completely unsatisfied with her last answer.

"If you promise to be sweet."

"I'm always sweet," I snorted, pushing up off the desk and walking towards Lily Evans.

"Lily!" I smiled, coming to a stop in front of her. "I just wanted to tell you that the thing we talked about isn't a problem anymore."

"Right," she said, returning my smile with a beautiful one of her own, "I knew I could count on you."

"Yeah," I nodded, watching Black walk towards me from my peripheral vision.

"I wanted to apologize for seeming so up-tight about the situation," she looked thoroughly apologetic. I really liked that about Lily. She always meant what she said.

"Eden," I heard a hoarse whisper from behind me.

"One moment," I said without turning around, doing my best to 'play hard to get'. "Don't worry about it, I'm glad you did." I continued to say goodbye to Lily before turning around to face Black. "Yes, Mr. Black?"

"I just had to tell you that," he began talking just as Professor Sinistra entered the tower. "that…"

"Mr. Black, if you could stop attempting to chat up girls on my time, maybe you would pass the class," the Professor said, shooing me back to my seat. I looked at Black, shrugging before walking over to Kate.

"What did he want to talk about?"

"I haven't the slightest clue."

"Well maybe if you hadn't been so busy ignoring him," she muttered.

"Kate, he bothers me," I crossed my arms over my chest. "Don't _you_ avoid people that bother you?"

"I usually cut them a break," she said, getting out a book and starting to read it. It seemed as if we were all dismissing each other before the point got out these days. Pretty soon Professor Sinistra let us go early. Despite what I had thought, Black didn't try to talk to me again.

"Where are Gwyn and Demi?" I asked, sitting down to dinner.

"I don't know," Kate shrugged, searching the table for them. "I haven't seen them since Transfiguration." Kate and I took our time eating, neither of us really wanting to talk about anything that was going on. Halfway through dinner, I noticed that she had stopped turning the pages of her book. I looked up. I was right, she wasn't reading anymore. Instead, she looked completely vacant, as if she had left this planet of ours.

"Kate?" it was no use, she continued to stare on blankly. "Kate, are you okay?" I began shaking her shoulder until she snapped out of it.

"Yes, sorry, I was just thinking," she slowly eased back into reality.

"About what?" I asked, finishing up my dinner.

"Last year," she looked up from her plate, giving me a sad smile.

"Last year was amazing."

"Too bad for change," she sighed, getting up from the table.

"You know Kate, change isn't always bad," I said looking over to the Gryffindor table; once again, only Potter and Pettigrew were to be found. When Kate and I walked inside the Commons, we found Gwyn and Demi sitting by the fire seeming completely submersed in a conversation.

"What?" Kate said as we sat down beside them. As soon as they had seen us, they had ceased all audible noise.

"Nothing," Gwyn said with an arrogant smile. "Any new developments in Operation Black Attack?" Kate shrugged, looking to me to see my reaction.

"No," I said, refusing to look up at her.

"It didn't look like noting when you two were passing notes in Transfiguration," Gwyn replied, taking out a notebook and beginning to write. "So Demi, I was wondering what—"

"Well, it _was_ nothing," I cut across her, refusing to let her dismiss me like she did everyone else. "Come on, Kate, maybe you can help me with the Potions homework." Kate and I walked up to the Dorms to put our bags away before returning back to the Commons and this time sitting by Hayden's group. We didn't actually have any homework in Potions, but I was sure even Gwyn knew that.

"So what's going on with you ladies?" Hayden asked, as soon as he was done playing a game of chess against the ever silent Patrick Peters.

"Avoiding Gwyn and Demetria," Kate said, barely looking up from the gigantic book she had been carrying around lately.

"Yes, if you don't mind me saying so," Hayden looked around self-consciously, "they've been a bit more…severe than usual."

"I think the word you're looking for is bitchy," I said, watching Demi and Gwyn giggle as they made their up the stairs, often looking back at Kate and me.

"Whatever," Hayden shrugged. "Women are crazy."

"Does this mean you're gay?" I asked, causing Kate to look up and give Hayden an I-knew-it look.

"If so, we know a great guy you can hook up with," Kate said, bursting out in laughter.

"No, Hayden could do much better than Black," I said, my laugh joining hers.

"You two are no better than Gwyn and Demi," Hayden was about to stalk away when I caught him by the sleeve.

"You know we're only kidding," I laughed, taking him in an embrace.

"Right," he snorted, his face flushing.

"I'm serious," I smiled, hugging him yet again. "It's funny to us because of your reactions."

"Yes," Kate said, smiling up at him. "Deep down inside, we love you."

"Sweet," Hayden winked. "Two girls for every boy."

"Hayden," Kate sighed, "no. Liz, it's time." She got up, leaving the room and dragging me behind her.

"Kate," I giggled nervously, "I don't want to be here. The sooner patrolling starts, the sooner it ends and the sooner I have to face Dumbledore."

"It's not like he's going to kill you," she said, using a charm to ignite the tip of her wand.

"You never know," I replied, following her example.

"This is better than a flashlight," Kate was shining her wand in different directions of the hall, seeing its impact and how much light it produced.

"A what?"

"Flashlight, it's a Muggle made device that uses—"

"You Half-Blood nerd," I snorted, walking to the third floor.

"Hey!" Kate called out after me. "At least I know how to work simple inventions!"

Kate was definitely one of my best friends, and her being a Half-Blood was one of the reasons why I had taken an instant dislike to Mrs. Black. Kate was definitely one of the smartest and most cultured people I knew. Talking to her about Muggles was always an adventure. It was always amusing to learn what they had made to fill up the hole being non-magical left in their lives.

Maybe it was because I was extremely nervous, or because after months upon months of patrolling the same hall, I had made peace with the time it took, whatever it was, it seemed that my shift was over as soon as it had begun. Black, fortunately, had decided not to bother me today, possibly getting his fill for a lifetime today in class. I began nervously walking towards the Gargoyle on the Second Floor, intent on making the walk last as long as possible.

* * *

A/N: Sorry about the cliffhanger; however, it's rather late at night and I don't feel like finishing the chapter like I was originally planning on. I'm extremely sick, and am planning on starting the next chapter on Sunday (it should be up by Tuesday). I've been really exhausted this week, and will be until the end of January so I might not update as often. Thank you for reading so far into the store. Read _**and**_ review. 


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: The cliffhanger was sort of unnecessary seeing as how the talk with Dumbledore isn't all that intriguing. Sorry about the disappointment.

GoTheDistance: I was actually looking for a word that kind of meant sabotage but rhymed with Black. I had to settle with Attack!

Xingo: Thank you for reviewing.

Won-Won-Weirdo: Don't be anxious, you helped me write most of it.

xxvisionaryxx: I'm planning for the girls to have a reunion…eventually. As for Liz, she's not based off of anyone, which is a bit odd seeing as how she's a solid character and I usually have trouble keeping original characters solid.

Siriuslyblairrr: I'm sorry to hear that about your friends. If it's any consolation, the situation was actually based on everything I was going through with _my_ friends. I hope everything works out, let me know how it goes.

P.E.E.V.S.Y.: The following chapter should hopefully answer your question, if not then…

For the love of all that is holy, if you read, **review**.

* * *

"Please sit down, Ms. Eden," He spoke as soon as I entered his room. I took a large breath, calming myself down. It was a trick one of my friends at Salem's Summer Institute for Young Witches and Wizards had taught me. You inhaled for four counts, held for four, exhaled for four, held for four. It was actually quite relaxing.

"You must be wondering why I asked you to come here," He said, giving me a kind smile. His eyes were twinkling with the light of the random torches inside his office. "You're not in trouble."

"Thank God!" I yelped before I could restrain myself. The Headmaster started chuckling at my reaction.

"I simply wished to talk to you about Mrs. Black's arrival the other night," he waited. I nodded, beckoning him to go on. "After I had walked her down the Third Hall, I was rather hoping to find you, but it seemed as if you had already gone back the Ravenclaw Commons."

"Oh," I gawked. So he had known I was there. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop, it just sort of happened."

"I understand," he popped a piece of candy from the bowl on top of his desk into his mouth. "I just wished to clarify the subject of our discussion before any assumptions were made." He pushed the bowl in front of me. I took a lemon drop and popped it in my mouth, enjoying the sour taste.

"Mrs. Black and I were discussing the future of her son," he waited a moment to see how I would react. "I would greatly appreciate said information not leaving this room."

"Right-o," I said before I could stop myself. I was just a tad bit in shock. "So… Mrs. Black was attempting to get Sirius expelled? Her own son?" I waited a second for him to nod. "Why?" I was trying to keep from shouting. This was even more depressing than I had originally thought.

"It seems as if Walburga would rather not have a son if having one means," he took a breath, attempting to find the right words, "a nonconformist in a traditionalist family."

"Wait, so," I was attempting to seem not so nosy, but try to figure out what was going on simultaneously, "she wants him expelled because he's not a Slytherin?"

"Amongst other reasons," Dumbledore gave me a knowing smile, his eye regaining its twinkle behind his spectacles. "Now, Ms. Eden," he looked at a clock behind him, "I'm sure you're more than wanting of a warm bed and a good night's rest."

"Right," I smiled, getting up and starting to walk over to the door.

"Oh and Ms. Eden?" I swirled around, beckoning him to go on. "It'd also be kind of you to keep the business about Mr. Lupin's time of the month between those who are already aware." I nodded, doing all I could to keep from bursting out with laughter.

* * *

"Kate," I whispered when I was back in the Commons. She was already asleep. She actually looked kind of peaceful, sleeping on one of the most comfortable couches near the fire. "Kate!" I said, nearly shouting this time. About half the people asleep in the Commons woke up as Kate did.

"I love you too, Re—" She was stirring around as her eyes began opening. "_Liz_. I love you too, _Liz_."

"What are you babbling on about?" I asked, sitting down next to her. Re. I had to add that to my memory to be questioned at a later time.

"Nothing, just that I love you," she looked around her suspiciously, making sure no one else had heard. "Why did you wake me? Are you expelled?" She seemed thoroughly indifferent to me being expelled.

"No, but thank you for your concern," I mocked. "Guess what."

"What?" She questioned yawning, seeming as careless as ever.

"Sirius' mom was trying to get him expelled."

"**What**?" She yelled, waking up whoever had remained sleeping after I had woken Kate up.

"Exactly," I whispered, motioning for her to get up and follow me to the dorms. "Dumbledore told me not to tell anyone but…Well, you needed to know."

"Thank you for telling me," she smiled. "Did he say anything else?"

"He told me to keep Remus' time of the month business to myself," I said, opening the door to our Dorms. Gwyn and Demi were nowhere in sight.

"Oh my lord," Kate said causing me to look back and see her laughing herself to hysterics, doubled over and holding her sides. "His time of the month?"

"What's so funny?" Gwyn said, appearing in the doorway.

"Nothing," Kate said between bursts of laughter. See? The girl was hopeless at lying.

"Right," Gwyn snorted, crossing her arms over her chest. Demi soon followed behind her, mirroring her every action. Demi had never been one for original thought.

"It's nothing about you," I assured her as I changed into my pajamas. I had wanted to talk to Kate about Sirius' home-life, but Gwyn's appearance put a damper on anything that included logic.

"Which is why you stopped talking when I came in, right?" She said, attempting to seem nonchalant. It was obvious to anyone who had known her long enough that she cared.

"Right, and that's why you stopped talking when Kate and I came up to _you_ the other day, right?" Her mouth snapped shut, and she gave me the most severe look she could manage. "I'm going to bed."

"So am I," Kate added. I was glad to see she had regained control of her body enough to stop laughing and change into her pajamas.

* * *

The next morning I sat in Charms, alone. Kate had had a sudden case of something-or-other and had gone to see Madam Pomfrey. I sat in class with Hayden to my right. Demi had taken Kate's usual seat and sat between Hayden and Gwyn. I felt someone staring at me and felt a pull towards a section of the class. I looked around, catching Black's eye. He gave me a wink and then looked to his left, where Lupin was sitting, busily taking notes.

Black nudged Lupin, causing him to look up and stare at me in astonishment. I gave him a little wave before returning to drawing my masterpiece on my parchment. Lupin looked beyond himself that someone had noticed him. Poor boy. I had always thought that he let his friends get away with entirely too much. However, now it made sense. I'd have done the same if it had meant acceptance.

"Black's staring at you," Hayden said out of the side of his mouth.

"What kind of stare is it?"

"What?" Hayden asked dully. I had forgotten he was a boy and not my beloved Katherine.

"Well okay," I said, attempting to simplify the question for his dense boy brain. "Does he look like he wants to kill me?"

"A little bit now that you mention it," he seemed a bit uneasy. "Do you want me to tell Dumbledore while you run for it?"

"No, but thanks," I looked up at Hayden, giving him my best smile. "Black usually wants to kill me."

"Oh, I see," He said, smiling back. I gave his arm a squeeze, resting my head on his shoulder and closing my eyes. I really didn't want to suffer through the day with Gwyn and Demi without Kate by my side to help lessen the blows.

"Liz?" he asked a moment or so after I had closed my eyes. "Now Black looks like he wants to kill _me_." I opened my eyes, looking at Black. Hayden was right. His murderous glare was now directed at Hayden.

"Ignore him, that's probably his way of hitting on you," I smiled, closing my eyes and reassuming my position.

"I don't exactly think that's it," Hayden muttered just as I was about to doze off.

"What do you mean?" I wasn't really paying attention, but this was apparently a big deal to him. He usually just let me sleep whenever I used his arm as a pillow. I felt his muscles tense up beneath my head, making the pillow rather hard. He wasn't that comfortable to lay on, he was much too built.

"He only wants to kill me when you're around," He said slowly, as if he didn't really want to admit to saying it.

"Well, Hayden," I giggled, "he hates me, and thus hates you for associating with me."

"That's still not it, Liz," he sounded a little bit worried. He was taking this entire threat on my life thing much too seriously.

"Then what?" I looked up this time, he was starting to worry me.

"I think Black…_likes_ you."

"What?" For some reason, I was offended and a bit mad. "Hayden, boys don't treat the girls they like as if they want to murder them."

"Yes, they do," he gave me a slightly irritated look. "I would know."

"Really," I snorted before I could stop myself. Hayden was one of the most attractive boys in our year, and he never dated a girl unless she asked him out. It was kind of odd to be getting advice on a crush from him.

"Yes, really," He shrugged, pushing me away from his arm. I glared at him before turning towards Flitwick. Black caught my eye quickly. He looked pretty pleased with what he had just witnessed.

"You're right," I muttered.

"What was that?" Hayden asked smugly. "I couldn't hear you over my wounded ego."

"I said you're right," I breathed, not wanting to make a sound.

"Exactly."

* * *

I spent the lunch period in the library. I hadn't had to do this ever since First Year, back when I didn't know anyone. Kate had come up to me, despite what Gwyn had told her, and befriended me. It hadn't been long before Gwyn had warmed up to me, and Demi was the new whipping girl. I had always been gracious to Kate for that. She had been my very first friend.

"What are you doing?" A voice asked, causing me to look up. It was Gwyn.

"Reading," I sighed, and looked back to the copy of The Lesser Known Followers of the Dark Lord by Suzanne Skeeter. I had spent every spare moment attempting to figure out who the figure that caught my eye most resembled.

"No," she matched my sigh, sitting across the table from me. "Why are you in the library alone?"

"Kate's in the hospital wing," I muttered flipping the page. I was starting to get a headache from concentrating on the photograph so much.

"Demi and I are still here," as she said this, I looked up trying to find Demi. She had come alone. This was very unlike Gwyn. She never went anywhere without Demi or one of the Fifth Years who worshipped her following her around.

"Okay," I muttered. I really didn't know what to say. I never knew what to say when I was confronted by someone.

"I'm serious, Liz. Look at me," she muttered. I looked up, finally looking her in the eyes. "I'm sorry about all the tension lately, I don't know what's going on with everybody."

"Neither do I," I lied. Sometimes it's easier to lie than to tell someone that they're at fault.

"We need a reunion," she smiled.

"We do."

"I'm sorry.

"So am I," I smiled.

* * *

"So I'm gone for one day and you reunite with the devil?" Kate was staring at her hands, her voice cracking.

"She's not the devil," I sighed. "Filch is clearly the devil."

"Liz," she finally looked up at me. "That's not the point."

"Then what is, Kate?" I asked, glaring at her. "She wants to be friends again. What am I supposed to say?"

"How about 'no'?" She returned back to glaring at her hands.

I sighed, not wanting to hear her out. "She deserves a second chance."

"Are you sure about that?" She turned the full intensity of her green eyes on me. It was my turn to look away, I didn't want her to see everything like she usually did.

"I'm sure." I wanted her to just say whatever it was that was on her mind. "Do you want me to stop talking to her?"

"Well…" She hesitated.

"Kate, I'm not choosing between you and Gwyn," I shouted. My voice had been slowly escalating the entire time, one octave with each word.

"I didn't say that," she was still staring at me, I could feel her eyes groping my skin.

"Then what _are_ you saying?" I crossed my arms over my chest, getting up from the seat beside Kate's bed.

"I don't know," she barked sarcastically, "that maybe you don't know who Gwyn is?"

"And you do?" I could hear my voice echoing around the room. I was actually surprised that Madame Pomfrey hadn't been in to usher me out yet. Maybe she'd realized the importance of this conversation.

"I know her better than you," she was completely calm. I grinned bitterly, realizing the contrast between the two of us. "I know she doesn't deserve a second chance."

"I'd give you a second chance," I jutted my chin out, turning my body slowly away from her. I wanted to leave more than anything. The past few days had been filled with way more confrontation that I wanted.

"Because I wouldn't do to you what Gwyn will," she sighed, her voice still tranquil. "You shouldn't be talking to her."

"Don't tell me what to do, Katherine," I got up, crossing to the door in two long strides. It was times like these that I was thankful for my height and long legs. "You are not my mother."

"Fine, do what you want," she sighed, giving up on the subject. "But whatever happens, remember this moment."

I knew she was going to say something else, something to attempt to calm me down. She would have probably changed the conversation to something lighter, but I had already slammed the door shut on her. As I marched back to the castle, hiding my face in my jacket against the cold, I couldn't help but hate her for her near indifference.

I got back to the castle just in time to change into warmer clothes and march back across the grounds to Herbology. I always liked the first week of lessons because it allowed you time to zone out and debate the meaning of life while the teachers took turns bragging about their subject and what made it the best. When I arrived, everyone was sitting at different labs.

"We're trying a new method this year," Professor Sprout spoke, waiving a hand at me to sit down. "In order to promote inter-house unity, your lab partners this year will be from a different house than yours."

"Oh God," I heard Hayden mutter. I looked at him, following his terrified eyes. He was staring at Amor Diggory who looked more than ecstatic at this new opportunity to torture him.

"Seeing as how this is a serious subject matter, you have the freedom to choose your own partners," she waited to give us all a smile before clapping her hands twice. "You have ten minutes to pick your partner."

Everyone ran around the greenhouse, rushing to keep from being stuck with the creeps. I saw Caroline Crabbe making her way to me. It was a bit like a horror movie as I watched her move towards me slowly. I watched her flesh quiver with every painstakingly large step she took. I heard the ground thump, and heard the echo as her feet stamped the ground with their mark. I felt my mouth drop open as she made direct eye-contact with me and smiled. It looked like Amor wasn't the only one in need of a partner to torture.

"Eden," I watched her mouth form, though all that I heard was a loud, manly moan. Simultaneously, I watched a black blur making its way towards me, hopefully attempting to rescue me. I reached out, grabbing the nearest piece of garment from the blur and pulled it towards myself.

"Sorry Caroline," I said, smiling with relief as the person I had grabbed didn't make any attempt to run away. "I've already got a partner."

"What?" said the person whose robes I was grasping onto as if it were life itself. Caroline gave me a grim smile before stomping away. I finally looked to the person whom I had forced to be my partner.

"Remus?"

"Elizabeth?"

"You're my partner?" I asked, completely astonished.

"I am?" He smiled as I started weakening my grip on him. "I am."

"You don't have to be if you don't want to," I felt bad for him. He probably didn't want to be my partner at all.

"No, this is fantastic," he gave me a heartfelt smile. "I actually thought I'd have a bit of trouble finding someone out of my house to be my partner."

"Problem solved," I sighed, sitting down behind a lab. We sat around, staring at each other awkwardly until Professor Sprout blew a whistle.

"Alright, does everyone have a partner?" she looked around the room, surveying the odd couples. I had been right; Amor Diggory had taken Hayden hostage. "If you do not have a partner, please raise your hand."

I looked around the room automatically, trying to see who didn't have a partner. Directly in front of us sat Patrick Peters, his hand raised up high. It was no wonder he didn't have a partner. I had yet to hear him speak a word. A bit more to the right was Severus Snape, with his hand raised, also no surprise. Most of the students at Hogwarts found him extremely intimidating. I looked behind me, seeing Sirius Black with his hand also raised in the air. There was the surprise I was looking for.

"Sirius Black, you will be partners with Patrick Peters," Professor Sprout whirled around, looking at Severus. "And you, Mr. Snape, will be partners with Katherine Kirkwood who is absent today."

Today's lab was a questionnaire to fill out with your partner as a miserable attempt at getting to know him or her. Nearly all of the students just switched their pieces of parchment, each filling out questions about themselves rather than the other person. Remus, on the other hand, being the ever shining example of a student that he was, was intent on actually doing the assignment.

"What was the name of your first childhood pet?" he asked me brightly, on his last question.

"I've never had a pet."

"Really?" he seemed intrigued, and a little sad that I hadn't had the pleasures of a filthy creature burrowing its way through my possessions.

"As a matter of fact, most animals scare me," I said monotonously. "Except wolves," I added quickly. "I love wolves."

"I know what you know," he sighed, putting down his parchment and quill. "You can stop the little hints."

"Well, Remus," I looked around, making sure that everyone was completely wrapped in whatever they were doing rather than in what we were saying, "I just want you to know that it makes no difference to me."

"I can tell," he gave me a small smile. "If it had, you wouldn't have picked me as your partner, even if it was just so you could escape Caroline Crabbe."

"Exactly," I grinned. There was a moment or two of awkward silence. "So now I have a question for you."

"Really?"

"Does Sirius Black fancy me?" I paused, waiting for him to respond. A questioning look took-over his features. "It's just that he's always staring at me," I spoke very quickly, trying to rush out everything before he decided I was conceited, "and today Hayden told me that Black fancies me and I just haven't been able to stop thinking about it and I don't know why he'd fancy me because he always looks like he wants to kill me but Hayden says that that's what boys do but simultaneously I don't believe him because this is Hayden I-Don't-Date-You-Until-You-Snog-Me Heathers, and I just—"

"Stop!" Remus yelped. "You're talking too fast. To answer your question, and the only part of that that I heard, Sirius doesn't like you, to the best of my knowledge. He had a bit of a thing for Abarella Abbott, but he's never even mentioned you."

"Oh," I said slowly. Of course. Why would Sirius Black like _me_, of all people. He was Sirius Black, Hogwarts Royalty, and I was...well, me. I was a silly little Ravenclaw girl he enjoyed torturing while he got away with whatever he pleased. Why would he fancy me when he could get any other girl in all of Hogwarts castle with just a look in their direction? I was no one to him.

* * *

After Ancient Runes, I decided to join Gwyn and Demi in the cafeteria. They were sitting at our usual spot. I walked over to them nervously, not knowing what to expect from Gwyn. Sure, she had told me I was more than welcome to join them in the library, but then she was alone, and now, she was with Demi, her most devoted worshipper.

"Good afternoon Elizabeth," she said, flashing her bright white teeth at me as I sat down. She flipped her mane of golden hair behind one shoulder as she began to speak. "It's quite pleasant of you to join us."

"Afternoon Gwyneth Garret, Demetria Didd," I smiled as I sat down opposite them. "It's quite lovely of you to have me."

"Thank you," Gwyn spoke, her eyes shining brilliantly.

"Thanks," Demi grunted, not as accepting of our little reunion.

"Is Katherine still in the Hospital Wing?" Gwyn asked, seeming a bit overdramatically concerned.

"Yes," I sighed, "Madame Pomfrey doesn't know what's the matter with her, although she should be able to rejoin us by tomorrow."

"Quite fantastic," Gwyn replied.

"Fantastic, indeed," I agreed, biting into a piece of bread after finishing my tea.

"How are things with Operation Black Attack?" she asked a few minutes later into the meal. She seemed completely indifferent to what the answer might be, which gave me some comfort. Sirius Black was not a big deal.

"They've been suspended since our last meet," I sighed. "Katherine and I have had no idea on where to take said mission."

"Ah, I see," she said, finally looking up from her food. "Well, then we will have to re-plan the aforesaid mission when Miss Kirkwood rejoins us."

"Quite fantastic," I smiled.

"Fantastic, indeed," Gwyn replied with a smile of her own.

* * *

That night, I kept tossing and turning in bed. When I finally surrendered to insomnia, I decided to run over what had happened that day. I knew that the only reason I had even given Gwyn the time of day was that Kate's absence had made me feel helpless. I also knew that Hayden telling me that Black liked me had been quite jolting to my state of mind. For some reason, it had meant more than it should have.

Next, the talk with Remus had more than restored my sanity. Everything felt more comforting and real when I knew Black didn't fancy me. There was something about the dinner, that unlike everything else, I couldn't figure out. Although Gwyn had been extremely welcoming at Dinner, Demi had been cold. She hadn't said a word to me the entire time. She nearly always followed suite with Gwyn, doing whatever she thought she wanted her to do… Although tonight, she had just alienated me. As unsettling as that felt, it was that thought that put me to sleep.

* * *

A/N: I kept losing my inspiration for this part of the story which is why it took a bit to write. I don't have rehearsal today or tomorrow, although I have quite a bit of homework to do. Who knows, I might even have an update for you by Friday! It all actually depends on the reaction to this chapter. I feel more obligated to write when I feel like you all actually like what I write. ;) thank you for reading so far into the Drama-Filled life of Elizabeth Eden. 


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: I found pictures of what I think all the characters look like. For links, email me. Yeah, it's called box breathing. I always use it backstage right before I'm about to go on because I usually almost have an aneurysm. Lol.

Won-Won-Weirdo: I like how we got absolutely no writing done tonight. At all.

xxvisionaryxx: Not to mention Abarella Abbott, Patrick Peters, Gwyneth Garret, Katherine Kirkwood, Brandon Bones, Marilyn Mercer, Susan Suthers, Peter Parkinson, and Caroline Crabbe.

Chocofrolicangel: That's a really good point, I guess I never thought of that. I was just having an issue making time pass. Haha. Thank you for the review, it made my day. I love thorough reviews like that!

Coolcat1000: I'm glad you like everything and enjoy the story, I hope to keep you as a reader.

Side Note: I've never finished a fan fiction in my entire fan fiction career. I'm sorry if I stop writing this midway.

I can't believe Heath Ledger's dead! He was gorgeous, and talented! Aww. Make it be un-true… Rest In Peace.

* * *

"Kate!" I shouted when I woke up the next morning. I saw her form in her bed and decided to attack it.

"Liz?" She asked groggily, slowly opening her eyes. Kate and I always loved the weekend, it gave us a chance to sleep in while it gave Demi and Gwyn a chance to rush about and do their beauty routine.

"You're back!"

"I wasn't dying or anything," she said, pulling the covers over her head and curling up into a ball.

"Then why did you have to go to the Hospital wing?" I poked her unconscious form, trying to get her to wake up and stay that way.

"I just needed a break," she sighed, staring at me from a little hole in the covers. "Now leave me alone before I feel the need to seek out Madam Pomfrey again."

"Fine," I yawned getting up off her bed. "I'm going to shower but you better be dressed by the time I get back!" I grabbed my shower things and made my way to the Prefect's bathroom.

I got in, locking the door behind me. I continued to set my things on the counter, making sure everything was ready for my bath. Gwyn and Demi had a beauty routine consisting of buying new make-up products, where as Kate and mine consisted of relaxation and nice smelling soaps. I flicked my hair behind me, winking at the mermaid in her painting who had a mischievous grin on her face. I abruptly stopped undressing when I heard a noise from somewhere inside the bathroom.

"Hello?" I asked, standing there in my tank-top and girl's boxers. "Is there anyone in here?" I started walking around the bathroom, slowly walking towards the closets.

"Die!" Black shouted, jumping out of the closet.

"Oh my God!" I shouted back, falling to the floor as I clutched my chest. "What the hell! What the fucking hell!"

"Calm down," he managed to get out between bursts of laughter. "I'm not actually going to kill you." I took a moment to breathe, regaining my posture.

"What the hell are you doing here?" I asked, still sitting on the floor. "You are neither a prefect nor a girl."

"I am, however," he smiled, "Sirius Black." He extended his hand out to me.

"No thanks," I replied, slapping it away and getting up on my own. "Now get back to your house before I deduct points."

"Are you sure you wouldn't fancy a bath instead?" he asked, giving me an elegantly casual smile.

"I would actually," I replied, "one completely void of scum like you. Now, **LEAVE**."

"Right," he smiled, "call me when you change your mind."

* * *

"That is it!" I shouted, stomping into the Girl's bathroom in our dormitory. "I am thoroughly, utterly, and completely sick of Sirius Black."

"What's he done now?" Gwyn replied, peeling a greenish layer off her face.

"I caught him in the Girl's Prefect bathroom!" I threw my stuff in the general direction of my bed and stood behind Demi and Gwyn, crossing my arms over my chest. "He cannot get away with this!"

"Did you deduct points?" I heard Kate's voice from beneath her covers.

"No," I replied. "I have a better idea."

"Yes?" Gwyn asked, her eyes lighting up.

"Operation Black Attack is revived," I said with a smirk. I immediately heard a frustrated sigh come from Kate.

"Now, now, Lady Katherine," Gwyn smiled, getting up and walking over to her bed, "no reason to be so judgmental."

"I'm not being judgmental, I'm being reasonable," she replied, still insisting on being buried beneath her dozen blankets.

"Just hear me out then," Gwyn smiled. "You might find reason in my answer."

"Fine," Kate answered, peeling away her blankets and finally emerging from beneath them. "Justify it."

"He's arrogant," I said.

"He needs to learn this lesson before it's too late," Gwyn added, crossing her arms over her chest.

"We'll be doing him a favor," Demi muttered, speaking for the first time in my presence.

"I'm not buying it," Kate said, and began going back beneath the blankets.

"Wait!" Gwyn yelped before Kate was submerged again. "We need you, to send you in as an agent to keep Remus busy."

"Remus?" Kate asked, her face lightening up.

"Yes," Gwyn replied with a huge smile. "Remus Lupin."

"Alright," Kate sighed. "I mean, I guess Black needs to learn this now before it irrevocably damages him for life."

"Yes and who better to teach him," Gwyn started, "than…"

"Us," we all spoke together.

"Fantastic," Gwyn breathed after a minute of silence. "We're all on the same page then?" She looked around the room, taking a second to stare at each of us individually and wait for a nod. "Beautiful. Now if you ladies don't mind, Demi and I must really get these masks off before they set themselves into our pores." They rushed to the bathroom, closing the door. I could hear them fighting over the sink.

"So what do you think?" Kate asked as soon as we heard them start the water.

"You know what I think," I sighed, sitting on the bed beside her. "What do you think?"

"Operation Black Attack is a go, as far as I'm concerned," she said, giving a weak smile. "Gwyn, however…"

"Come on, you saw how supportive she was," I replied.

"Yes, but she seemed as if she were expecting the entire thing," Kate was concentrating hard on her hands. She always did that when she was attempting to figure out a puzzle.

"Katherine, you're being absolutely paranoid," I said. "I mean, I know you and Gwyn clash, but that doesn't mean she's a bad person."

"I'm not saying she is," she looked up at me. "But if something happens, and I'm saying if, not when, then remember that I told you so."

"Deal," I jutted my hand out at her.

"Deal," she said, shaking mine. "I no longer feel compelled to warn you."

"And I no longer feel compelled to listen," I laughed.

* * *

"So what is your plan?" I asked Gwyn when we finally made it to breakfast.

"Well, first thing's first," Gwyn smiled. I had decided to ask early on into the meal, seeing as how she seemed about to burst with excitement. "Observation."

"We're going to watch Black," Demi added, "see everyone he hangs out with, the stupid jokes he makes, the bands he's into, what he finds attractive, we're going to find out—"

"Everything," Gwyn finished for her. "We will be doing that until the first Hogsmeade visit which is exactly in twenty-eight days."

"Also known as four weeks," Demi added.

"Upon our visit to Hogsmeade," Gwyn went on, rushing her words out in her excitement, "we're going to buy all the clothes and items we find suitable for the operation from Gladrags and wherever else we need to go."

"And by the end of that week," Demi said, catching Gwyn's twinkle in her own eye, "you will be everything he's wanted."

"And by the end of this school year," Gwyn said.

"If everything goes to plan," Demi added.

"You will be everything he's dreaded," Gwyn said, a wicked smile contorting her features. I sat back for a second or two, not knowing how to react.

"It's quite brilliant," Kate admitted, having paused in reading her book to listen to the plan.

"I think so," Gwyn said, taking a few deep breaths.

"And he deserves it," I said. "I'm in."

"As am I," Gwyn said.

"So am I," Demi said, looking at me.

"Well," Kate sighed. "I guess I am too."

"Beautiful!" Gwyn screeched. "Now, Liz, there's something that you need to do until our first visit to Hogsmeade."

"Yes?" I asked, finishing the last of my tea and starting to actually eat.

"We need you to lay low," Gwyn sighed.

"Hmm," Kate replied. "That's a good idea. You should disappear from his view for a while."

"But how am I going to spy on him if I'm laying low?"

"You're not spying on him," Demi said with a bit of resentment, "we are."

"But then how do I know what kind of clothes you're going to be ordering for me?"

"You won't," Gwyn smiled. "It's going to be a surprise."

"This sounds like much more fun than I originally thought," Kate giggled, closing her book which was an epic event in its own way.

"I don't know," I was starting to be unsure of everything. I didn't know whether I wanted to go into a makeover completely blind of what the outcome would be.

"Oh come on," Gwyn sighed. "Don't ruin our fun."

"Yes, Liz," Demi said, a smirk placing itself on her face. "Don't ruin our fun."

"Alright," I sighed. "What's the worst thing that could happen?"

* * *

At first the days passed by slowly. We were all easing into our new responsibilities. I spent most of my time with Kate in the library, in total isolation of Sirius Black. Kate's main job was to do all she could to keep Black from realizing I was alive. I hardly ever saw Demi and Gwyn, seeing as how they were always tailing Black and his group of miscreants.

We all mainly made our own job outline. No one exactly knew what to do. However, as the days slowly turned into weeks, we were all turning into experts in what we had to do. Slowly, but surely, time ticked down to our first visit to Hogsmeade, where the group was to unite inside The Hog's Head and review the plan.

* * *

"Are you ready?" Kate asked as she bowed her head against the intense wind as we made our way to the shady bar.

"I was born ready, Katherine," I said, popping my collar against the wind. The weather had taken a harsh turn. "How do you feel?"

"If Demi and Gwyn did as well of a job as we did," she paused as a group of Third years passed us, "then all should go well."

"I hope," I replied. I opened the door to the bar and walked inside. I immediately spotted Demi and Gwyn at an isolated table in the shadiest corner of the bar.

"Hello ladies," Gwyn smiled as we sat down beside them.

"Good afternoon," Kate smiled.

"It feels nice to reunite," I chimed in.

"Quite," Demi answered, moving the boxes of clothes that they had ordered off the table to make room for the Butter Beer they had just ordered.

"Well then, down to business," Gwyn started. "It's time to tell you two what we've learned."

* * *

A/N: -insert evil laughter here- On a scale of one to ten, how much do you hate me? I'm thinking it's about an eight. Not only did I write a short chapter but that's possibly the worst cliffhanger I've ever left. Thanks for reading. R & R. 


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: I'm sorry about the short chapter, the crappy time transition and the horrid cliffhanger. Hope you don't hate me too much.

GoTheDistance: He was just **so** hot! And talented! It's just not faiiir! I mean, I know everyone says "Life isn't fair", but I was hoping death was. :( I'm having a tribute to him and watching a bunch of movies he was in later tonight. So sad.

Xingo: Aww you're sweet. But I generally don't get bored with a story if there are reviewers. I feel morally obligated. Heh.

WackyWizard: Yay! New reader! Thanks for reading!

PseudonymismyPseudonym: Hayden is most definitely one of my favorite characters. Gwyn isn't evil, she's…_questionable_. Heh. Thanks for reading. Btw, awesome pseudonym. ;)

Thank you all for reading so far into EE:HR, I hope I haven't let you down too much.

* * *

"Well?" I asked after a moment or two of silence. "What have you learned?" 

"I just," Gwyn sighed, "I can't decide between showing you the clothes first or telling you what we've learned."

"Let's compromise and do both," Kate said looking up from her psychology book. She had been brushing up on psychology ever since the Operation had first been revived.

"In that case, we need to get back to Hogwarts," Gwyn said. "It's a brilliant idea, really. There ought to be no one there who can disturb us."

"Perfect," Demi smiled. We all got up from the table, walking to the exit. We had left Demi to carry the boxes and bags alone.

"Don't worry Liz," Gwyn said reading the look on my face as we climbed up the steps to the Dorms. "I'm fairly sure you're going to like what we've bought for you."

"Yes," Demi panted behind the many boxes. "It turns out that you and Sirius Black have quite a lot in common."

"Which could only add to the cause," Gwyn smiled, opening the door to our dorm. "You won't have to act as much."

"You could be yourself," Kate laughed.

"An improved version of yourself," Demi muttered.

"Ignore her," Gwyn yelped harshly. "Demi, put everything on Liz's bed." Demi did as Gwyn asked while the rest of us sat in a triangle in the middle of the room. Demi sat down a few moments later, changing the shape to a square.

"Alright," Kate spoke up first. "Now that we're all here, Gwyn, would you care to start?"

"Of course, Katherine," Gwyn said, turning around to fetch a notebook from beneath her bed. "First is his history, which might be a bit shocking to you. As we all know here, the Blacks are a pureblood family who—"

"Put as much stress on being pureblood as possible," Kate snorted. None of us questioned her animosity. Although none of us every openly admitted it, a lot of people at our school were still biased against half-bloods and Muggle-borns.

"Right," Gwyn smiled. "However, Black recently moved out, although we haven't figured out why. This topic is open for discussion if anyone wishes to chime in."

"Well," Demi spoke up, "I say he just wanted to move out and his family was fine with that." Kate and I exchanged looks, both deciding not to tell Gwyn and Demi about what had happened in Dumbledore's office.

"I doubt that," I said. "Maybe he's not how his family is, I mean, he's the first to not be sorted into Slytherin."

"Just because you don't get sorted into the house most of your family is sorted into," Demi spoke harshly, "doesn't mean you're different than them."

"Speak for yourself," I snorted.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing," Gwyn cut in before I could say anything. "Let's leave this topic alone for the time being until we hear more about it."

"Alright," Kate sighed, "what's the next topic?"

"His favorite band is a Muggle band by the name of The Roaches or something," Gwyn said, flipping through her bands.

"Are you sure you don't mean The Beatles?" Kate asked.

"Oh, right," Gwyn laughed, "The Beatles. How did you know that?"

"Just a guess," Kate turned towards me. "I gave you their best hits last year for Christmas, if I remember correctly."

"I know," I smiled. "I listened to them everyday over the summer. I love their songs."

"Brilliant," Gwyn said. "That is one less thing you'll have to fake." She took a few more minutes to flip through her scribbled notes. "He's into photography."

"You love photography," Kate added.

"Yes, but I'm not good at it," I said.

"Whatever," Kate shrugged. "It's the interest that counts, not the level of skill."

"He loves motorcycles," Gwyn said, squinting to read her own handwriting. "Whatever that is."

"It's a Muggle invention a bit like a bicycle with a motor," Kate sighed. "Hence the name."

"Right-o," I added. I wouldn't have had any idea what any of these things were if I hadn't spent as much time with Kate as I did.

"That's all the common trivia we have," Gwyn said. "Now down to the part that really matters-"

"I think his interests matter!" Kate called out, flipping halfway through her book in search of something. "It can help them develop a bond, so that he feels more willing to trust her, it says right here in chapter twelve that—"

"Katherine!" Gwyn yelled. "Save that for later!"

"Fine," Kate said bitterly, closing her book.

"From the girls he has dated," Gwyn began.

"Or rather the girls he hasn't dated," I snorted, "seeing as how he's snogged nearly all the girls, and about half the guys."

"Guys?" Gwyn cocked an eyebrow at me, adding it to her notebook. "Anyway. We have come to the conclusion that he likes mystery in a woman, and basically someone who can put up with his moodiness."

"Moodiness?" I asked. "I had no idea Black had feelings."

"Trust us," Demi spoke up. "He does. And a lot of them, too."

"Exactly," Gwyn said. "Through our observation, we realized that he 's… Emotionally unstable."

"Is that it?" Kate asked after a moment or two of silence.

"Well, Kate, you're underestimating how much of this is up to Liz," Gwyn said gravely. "We are just here for help, everything else is up to Liz, if she's up to it."

"Of course I'm up to it!" I shouted. "I'm sick of Black thinking he can walk on water!"

"Liz, Liz, Liz," Kate sighed, shaking her head. "Black thinks he's God, not Jesus."

"Right!" I said, standing up. "He needs to be put in his place! He needs to realize that he's just one of us, and who better to do it than me? He's been picking on me ever since I came to this school!"

"Before we begin," Gwyn said, "we need to ask you two questions."

"Go ahead," I shrugged, sitting back down.

"Are you willing to do whatever it takes to bring Black down?"

"Of course," I answered. I thought it was obvious. "Next question."

"Are you sure that this has nothing to do with what happened last year?"

"The fact that he humiliated me last year after falsely winning a duel," I breathed, attempting to calm down, "has nothing to do with this. It just added to my already overwhelming contempt for the arrogant brainless womanizer."

"Brilliant," Gwyn smiled. "I no longer feel horrid about this."

"Right," I rushed, trying to get to the better part of the night. "Can we please just get to the clothes already?"

"Okay," Gwyn said, a light shining through her green eyes. "He likes mystery."

"He likes flirts," Demi said, opening one of the boxes to reveal a dozen skirts, "but flirts that only have eyes for him."

"And other boys only when trying to make him jealous," Gwyn added, emptying out several boxes and bags onto my bed. I was swamped with clothing and beauty supplies.

"How much money did you all spend on this?" I asked in astonishment, going through the gorgeous garments.

"All free," Demi smiled, "courtesy of The Didd Clothing Shoppe."

"That's amazing," Kate said, sifting through the clothes with me. There were dozens of shirts, jeans, skirts and jackets. They were all in dark colors, mainly black, grey and navy. However, there were random items of bright colored clothing.

"The point here is for you to look absolutely brilliant," Gwyn said, "without appearing arrogant."

"You must be gorgeous," Demi said, holding up a dress to my chest, "and pretend not to know it."

* * *

Luckily, the next day was Sunday, giving us an extra day to plan. Through painstaking observation, Gwyn and Demi knew that Black was in the library, along with Remus Lupin. Apparently Lupin had taken it upon himself to tutor Black in Herbology, seeing as how Black was failing miserably. I knew that it was because he never said a word to Patrick Peters, and seemed to hate his very existence. Thus, he ended up having to do a lot of the projects on his own and ended up making a mess out of the simplest tasks. 

"Today is the day to practice our thesis," Gwyn said, watching me put on make-up.

"Are you sure she's ready?" Kate asked, not even bothering to look up from her psychology book.

"Well we might as well test it," Gwyn sighed. "She's not quite ready yet, but I think she's equipped enough for a test drive."

"Besides," I said, putting on mascara as my mouth hung open, "it's not as if meeting in the library consists of talking."

"Demi," Gwyn barked, "go down to the library, make sure Sirius Black and Remus Lupin are still there."

"Alright," Demi replied, getting up and leaving the room gravely.

"Do I look okay?" I asked, turning towards Gwyn and pulling a face.

"Absolutely brilliant, he won't be able to hold it in his pants."

"I hope not," Kate snorted from her bed.

"So what do I do?" I asked, feeling the butterflies in my stomach intensify. I didn't want anything to go wrong from the beginning of the operation after all of their hard work.

"Act cool," Gwyn said.

"Act as if he doesn't matter," Kate called out. "It'll catch his attention, seeing as how everyone else treats him like he is the lord."

"Sounds good," Gwyn said, going over to the closet and picking out some clothes for me to wear. "Treat him as if he is…Brandon Bones. He'll never see it coming."

"Alright, how am I supposed to catch his eye if I'm supposed to ignore him?"

"Oh," Gwyn said, laughing to herself, "you're not to catch his eye, your body is."

* * *

I walked into the library wearing the clothes Gwyn had picked out for me. I had to admit, I looked quite brilliant. Gwyn knew what she was doing when it came to clothes, which was why many of the girls in our year always looked to her for advice. Her word on anything concerning beauty was final. As far as they were concerned, she was all of society in one girl. 

I could feel their eyes on me. Gwyn, Demi and Kate were sitting at three different tables, all attempting to seem nonchalant and as if nothing was out of the norm. Through some sort of Muggle invention that Kate had, I could hear them clearly via a device in my ear. They could also hear everything going on with me through another device put under my clothes. I could hear everything they had to say, but they wouldn't be able to hear me unless I spoke out-loud and hence, looked crazy.

"He's at your 9 o'clock," I heard Gwyn speak. "Walk past his table." I did as they told me to and walked to a bookshelf by them. I propped open a big book and held it in front of my face.

"Did he see me?" I whispered, barely audible.

"No," I heard Kate.

"No," that one was Demi.

"No," this one was Gwyn. "Walk by them again, don't rush it. Take your time."

"Look as if you're looking for something," Demi said, "and you have no idea what section of the library it's in." I nodded, completely aware that they were all still watching me. I walked back by their table, this time taking my time to look around while standing right in front of it. I slowly made my way to the shelf right beside them. I was standing behind Remus Lupin, in full view of Sirius Black.

"Jackpot," I heard Gwyn giggle. "The subject is currently eying your bum."

"Oh," I muttered, whirling around quickly.

"Don't notice him!" Kate warned. "Act natural!" I quickly opened the book and leaned against the book case.

"Nice save," Kate breathed. "Gwyn, don't tell her things like that, she'll freak."

"I won't," I muttered, trying to seem as if I were reading a part of the book to myself. Hey, at least it seemed less crazy than if I just stood there, talking to myself.

"Walk away," Demi rushed, "he's making his way over to you."

"Get out of there before he has a chance," Kate said.

"Leave the library!" Gwyn spoke. I did as they told me. I quickly put the book back on its shelf and nearly ran out of there. I could tell Black was coming out after me, I could see him out of my peripheral vision. I hid in the gap behind the library door and the stone school wall, watching him come into the hall to look for me. I held my breath as he stood right in front of the door and looked around the hallway, attempting to figure out which way I had gone.

"Sirius!" I heard Lupin calling after him. "Get back here, we have studying to do!"

"Oh," Black spoke, looking around the hall one last time. "Coming." He whirled around, walking back into the library. I squeezed myself out of the gap, waiting for my fellow life-ruiners to meet me.

"Brilliant," Gwyn laughed, coming out of the library.

"Next time," Demi sighed, "Don't run from him."

"I thought it added a nice touch," Kate said, the last to come out of the library. We started walking towards the Commons.

"Me too," Gwyn said, linking her arm through mine as we entered the Commons and then the Dorms.

"Well all I'm saying is that," Demi paused, "that maybe it just—"

"Just stop talking," Gwyn barked, causing Demi to snap her mouth shut. Gwyn opened the door to the Commons, ushering us all inside.

"It's nearly lunch," Kate said a few minutes later. "I say we plan the rest of the day then."

"This is actually turning out to be fun," I said, admiring my image in the bathroom mirror. "Plus, I don't look too shabby."

"Not too shabby?" Gwyn scoffed. "You look amazing."

"Thanks to us," Demi muttered, earning a dirty look from Gwyn.

"Well," Gwyn said, completely dismissing Demi's having said anything at all, "we need to plan a few outfits for your off-time."

"It'll be blissful to not have to sit around in robes all day," I said. I had always hated wearing robes. They were so dull and unimaginative, and made you look like a tent.

"And fun," Gwyn replied. "Anyway, I'm not sure whether you should go to lunch with us?"

"Why not?" Kate asked, giving Gwyn an odd look.

"What if Black tries talking to her then?" Gwyn asked, "she's not ready." Gwyn started pacing the room, trying to think of a solution.

"How about we take Hayden with us?" Kate asked. "Black hates Hayden."

"And the poor boy deserves a break from Patrick Peters," I laughed.

"I saw him in the Commons when we were coming up here," Gwyn said absentmindedly. "Let's go find him and go to lunch. I'm hungry."

"Me too," Kate said, walking over to the door.

"He's staring at you," Kate said, sitting opposite me a few minutes later at the Ravenclaw table. "He's been staring at you."

"That's good," Gwyn said.

"He looks like he wants to kill me," Hayden said.

"Also good," Gwyn replied. We all gaped at her. "Well it means he's jealous!" she said, defensively. "Would you rather have him jealous or indifferent?"

"I'd rather have him crushed," I said, stabbing my food with my fork. I didn't feel like eating. "He only fancies me because he wants in my pants. He doesn't know the first thing about me."

"It's Black," Hayden shrugged, eating a bite of his macaroni. "You can't expect him to have much depth."

"Good point," I laughed. The rest of the day was pretty incident-free seeing as how Kate insisted that I eat dinner with her in the library. We spent the end of the night going over the harder points of Astronomy.

The next day in Charms, Flitwick had us pair up into partners and practice the spells we had been learning over the past month. We were learning to make everything blend in, as if every object were a chameleon. Kate and I practiced together while occasionally switching partners with Gwyn and Demi. Kate and I got the hang of things quickly while everyone else in the class had a bit of trouble with it. After half an hour of turning everything Flitwick showed us into the colors around it, Flitwick let us go early. The rest of the day went by just as incident-free.

"We have Herbology next," I said, scrunching up my face. "You know what that means."

"Yes," Kate said, briefly looking up from what she was writing in the margins of her book. "You spend time with Remus Lupin and I with Severus Snape."

"Yeah," I sighed, staring at my shoes. "How is that, by the way?"

"Severus?" Kate asked, causing me to nod although I knew she couldn't see me. "He's actually rather funny. We should all spend time together one of these days. I think you'll like him."

"Seriously?" I said. "He doesn't seem like the type of person who'd be social… or have any patience for someone who is half-blood."

"Actually, he's quit nice." Kate smiled. "Besides, he's really good at Herbology. He's not bad as they say."

"I know, I know," I sighed. "Never judge a book by its cover."

"Exactly," Kate said, getting up off our usual corner by the statue on the second hall. "Now come on, we'll be late to Herbology."

"What are we doing?" I asked, plopping down into the chair next to Remus.

"Oh, I thought you were absent," he smiled, still concentrating on the objects in front of him. "I doubt Professor Sprout is feeling her best today. We're just doing busy work."

"What exactly are we supposed to do?" I asked, staring at the several objects and the squirming worm in front of him.

"Apparently if you capture this small worm within a box and keep it really dark for a week or so," he said, poking a squirming creature and a silver bejeweled box, "it comes out as a beautiful butterfly."

"Don't normal worms do that?"

"Caterpillars," he corrected. "They entrap themselves in a cocoon. Plus, this butterfly is supposed to be much more dazzling than a normal one, and it lives for years rather than two weeks."

"Ah, I see," I said, reaching out over his hand to touch it. He yelped, flinching and jumping back as my arm barely grazed his. "What?" I asked, thoroughly confused, "What happened?"

"Professor Sprout?" Remus called out, "may I be excused? I need to see Madam Pomfrey immediately." He ran up to the teacher, showing her his arm and dashing towards the door.

"Ms. Elizabeth Eden," Professor Sprout barked, "go with him." I ran outside, catching up with him.

"What happened?" I asked, watching him hold his arm against his chest.

"Could you please not wear silver anymore?" he asked through great strain. He seemed as if he were in terrible pain.

"Why?" I asked, fingering my silver bracelet. "What happened?"

"It hurts my… uhm…" He dashed inside the doors of the Hospital Wing, "skin." Remus ran up to Madam Pomfrey, showing him his hurt arm. She sighed, going to the cabinet to retrieve an ointment on it.

"Elizabeth?" Madam Pomfrey asked, "Could you please soothe this lotion into his arm? I'm rather busy with the sudden breakout of the flu among the students."

"Sure thing," I said, still having no idea what was going on. "Remus, what's going on?"

"Liz, you know this," he whispered. "I'm a werewolf."

"Wait," I said, rubbing the ointment onto his badly burned flesh. "So it's true? Silver hurts you?"

"Obviously," he said, motioning to his arm. I quickly took my bracelet off, putting it in my pocket. Burning him badly once was enough for one day.

"I'm sorry," he sighed a few minutes later. "I've been very rude, it's just that… well, it hurts."

"I understand," I smiled. "Can I ask you a question?" I waited for him to nod as he shut his eyes when I accidentally touched the burn. "Sorry. Anyway… So, if that legend is true, are any of the other ones true?"

"Yes," he nodded, opening his eyes. "Crosses burn me."

"Really?" I inhaled, in utter shock. I never expected Hollywood to be factual about anything.

"No," he laughed.

"Smooth," I said, laughing as well.

"I think we're good," he said, examining his arm. He rubbed the extra ointment away on his sheets. He showed his arm to me. There was no trace of a burn on his arm, only a small stretch of pink scar. "Should we go back to class?"

"I don't really care," I shrugged.

"I think we should," Remus said with a worried expression, "I'd hate missing something in class."

"You're right, I said, getting up off the bed and making him follow me to the door. Once we were back in Herbology, Remus managed to shove the squirmy worm inside the box by the time class was over. The rest of the day went by rather quickly. As soon as I stood up from one meal, it seemed as if I were sitting down for the next. Kate and I spent the day avoiding Black and his crew while Gwyn and Demi tailed him.

"We have a meeting before patrolling," Kate stated, plopping down on the couch next to us. "Apparently Lily has something on her mind."

"_We_ haven't done anything," I said confidently. "Have we?"

"I don't think so," Kate said, suddenly as unsure as I was. We were both a tad bit anxious as we started walking over to the doors of the Great Hall where the meeting was to be held. Apparently we were late because everyone was already gathered there and looked to be waiting for us.

"Thank you for coming ladies and gentlemen," Lily said in a loud confident voice, she looked around the group smiling. "Lately, we've had a bit of trouble with vandalism. As I'm sure you've heard Filch whine several times, someone has been sneaking out after hours to vandalize the school corridors." She paused to take a breath. "Now, I urge you all to deduct points from whomever you find wandering these halls. If this problem does not end, there will be drastic changes." She gave us one final smile before telling us we were free to go.

Kate walked to the Sixth floor as I walked to the Third. I could tell Kate wanted me to remain silent. I waived goodbye at her as I started climbing the stairs to my floor two at a time. I walked the corridor, a little on edge. Lily was right. There had been several instances where I had heard the sound of parchment rubbing against itself ant thought nothing of it, only to find the walls covered with graffiti the next morning.

The most disturbing was that the messages were the usual pro-Pure Blood bigoted idiocy. I didn't know how Kate handled it. I knew that she was in no danger as long as she went to Hogwarts, but the thought of someone so close-minded walking the halls was more than enough to terrify me. You'd think that in times like these, with Voldemort's rise to power, everyone would be more willing to unite. However, with attacks and accusations flying every which way, the incidents gave people more reason to separate.

I turned around, hearing a bump from behind me. I walked over quietly, not wanting the person to know I was there. If this was the person vandalizing the school halls, I wanted to catch him before he realized I was there. There was a crash, causing me to whip around and look towards the direction of the only statue on the floor.

"Ouch," I heard a voice say. I hid myself behind a bench to the side of the hall, watching a figure come out of the shadows. He, or she, seemed to come out of no where. One second there was no one there, and then there was the outline of someone's body.

"Lumos duo!" I said, causing my wand to generate a focused beam of light.

"Who's there?" asked a familiar voice.

"A prefect, say who you are before I call down Dumbledore himself," I replied in a booming voice. I was attempting to seem confident.

"Keep your voice down! It's me, Sirius," he said. I pointed my wand at him to see him standing there, rubbing his head which seemed to have gotten a nasty blow by the statue. He was fumbling to put a piece of parchment inside his robes.

"Hurt yourself?" I asked, sneering. "Well, Sirius Black, today is your lucky day. Follow me to the second floor."

"Why?"

"So I can get the headmaster, child," I replied impatiently. "You don't expect me to let you go after all this defacing of school property, do you?"

"Defacing of school property?" he spat, shoving my hand and thus getting my wand light out of his face. "I simply walked into a statue!"

"You know what I mean!" I replied. "Your Pure-Blood messages are posted all around the walls!"

"Are you fucking serious?" he asked, crossing his arms over his chest. He took a deep breath, attempting to get himself to calm down.

"Yes, I am, Sirius," I replied, waiting a second or two. "Get it? Serious? Sirius?"

"Hilarious," he rolled his eyes. "I've never heard that one before."

"I can't stand here jabbering with the likes of you, Sirius Black," I replied coolly, regaining my posture. In my haste to find the bigot, I had completely forgotten Operation Black Attack. "Now, if you would follow me to the headmaster's—"

"It is not me," he growled, much like a dog. "And I _know_ you know that."

"Well—"

"You've met my mother," he said. This time, I could actually hear the growl in his voice. He sounded like he was about to tear me apart.

"Okay," I said taking a deep breath. "Promise it's not you?"

"I promise," he spat through gritted teeth.

"Fine," I said, crossing my own arms across my chest. "What are you doing out here at night?"

"Looking for someone," he said, attempting to seem nonchalant.

"Oh really?" I asked. "Whom, exactly?"

"What's it to you?" he snarled. He was trying to calm down, and so far, failing.

"I'm a prefect," I said sighing loudly. "Tell me or I will deduct points."

"A girl."

"Named?" I knew I was pushing it, but I didn't care. I wanted him to remember this, to realize I was alive and that I was the same girl he had been gawking at inside the library.

"That's none of your business," he said with a bark-like laughter. "I never kiss and tell."

"Do you let the girls tell?" I asked, doing everything I could to push him further. "You really shouldn't be forcing yourself on innocent girls."

"Trust me, she wants me."

"How are you so sure?" I asked, causing him to look up and deep into my eyes. I could almost feel him tugging at the edges of my mind.

"I can see it in her eyes," he said with a grin.

"If it's me you're talking about," I said, doing my best to sound bored, "do not delude yourself, Sirius Black. Besides, I'm dating someone already."

"Oh," he stammered. He took half a second to recompose himself. "It's quite arrogant of you to think that I was talking about you."

"Right," I snorted. Yeah, like he hadn't been gawking at me in the library the day before.

"Besides, Elizabeth," he gave a mocking smile, "trust me, I could do much better than **you**." My mouth hung open as he turned around on the heels of his and sauntered away, completely uncaring to what I had to say to him.

* * *

A/N: Yay! Long chapter! This was nearly twice as long as the last chapter, which makes me happy. I love long chapters, don't you? Well, V-day is coming up, and I'm fairly sure I know what I'm getting you, dear reader. However, until then, you can expect at least one more chapter. Thanks for reading! 

**Reminder: Review! **


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Although I re-wrote this chapter a few times, it still sucks.

Xingo: I love Sirius. He makes me giggle… Like a silly little school girl. Haha.

GoTheDistance: Haha. Yeah. They usually _aren't_ right, but in this fanfic… They…can…be?

PseudonymismyPseudonym: Ah you've found me out! (or have you?) And about Sirius being a stalker.. Maybe he was just there by circumstance? I don't know yet.

Siriusly777: Thanks for reading!

Sovereignty'd: Great, the one guy I create and people think he's gay. –sighs-

Guys, thanks for reading this far into this fan fic. Sorry for how bad this chapter is.

P.S: When I first started writing, one of my friends told me to never let the characters kiss before chapter ten… Which reminds me, the next chapter (chapter ten), will be up on Valentine's Day.

* * *

"You told him you're dating someone?" Kate asked, cocking an eyebrow at me.

"Uhm," I replied, not looking up from my hands. "Sort of."

"How do you sort of tell someone something?" Gwyn asked, crossing her arms over her chest. Apparently what I had done had been a serious draw back in the Operation.

"It just sort of happened, okay?" I said, putting my arms up as surrender. "I don't know how, or why, but I just told him I was dating someone."

"Fine," Gwyn said, jutting out her chin. "Who are you dating?"

"I don't know," I muttered.

"What's that?" Kate asked.

"I said," I shouted, "I don't know!"

"Well, what's happened has happened, I guess," Gwyn said, sighing and plopping down in front of the fire with me. "It's not like we can exactly go back in time."

"Or can we?" Demi asked.

"I meant it's not like we're going to go back in time," Gwyn said mockingly. "It could've been worse."

"How?" Demi snorted.

"She could've told him she's a lesbian," Kate shrugged.

"Great, that's all I need, another rumor," I said, burying my head in my hands.

"Half the school thinks you're dating Hayden," Demi said.

"And the other half thinks you're dating Snape," Kate laughed.

"And that you're under a spell," Gwyn said. "Because of the makeover," she added quickly after seeing the shocked look on my face.

"Well, this is just perfect," I spoke into my hands.

"What's going on?" it was Hayden, I could tell by his deep voice.

"Liz is miserable," Kate said, as if discussing the weather. "She's quite suicidal?"

"What?" Hayden yelped, sitting right by me.

"She's kidding," I spoke into my hands again.

"What?" Hayden asked.

"I said," I looked up from the barrier of my hands, "she's kidding." Although my spirits had been down in the dumps lately, none of the girls had noticed until now. Lately, it seemed as if they never noticed anything about me unless it had something to do with the Operation. I missed having their attention for other things, like the trials my self esteem was having.

"Oh," Hayden put his arm on my shoulder, "well, what's the matter then?"

"She told Black she has a boyfriend," Gwyn said.

"Which she doesn't," Demi added. "And now she looks like a liar."

"That's it?" Hayden laughed. "I could easily fix that problem."

"How?" Gwyn asked, getting a wicked twinkle in her eye.

* * *

"Are you sure about this?" I asked Hayden the next morning as we made our way to breakfast. "Are you sure it will work?"

"Yeah," he laughed. "Believe it or not, I'm a boy. I know how our brains work." We walked into the Great Hall, hands intertwined. "Do you see him?"

"Yeah, over there, at the head of the Gryffindor table," I replied, spotting Black immediately.

"Let's go over there," Hayden laughed. "This should be fun."

"That's debatable," I muttered as Hayden half-dragged me to the Gryffindor table.

"What's this?" Black asked as soon as he spotted us, seeming bored and barely amused. "Come to show off your lover?"

"No," I said as Hayden kissed my cheek and dropped my hand, walking over to the Ravenclaw table. "We're not dating. I just wanted to tell you that I lied to you last night."

"What?" Black asked, seeming bored out of his mind. "Could you please hurry this along? I have other business to get to."

"Right. I just wanted to say that I'm not dating anyone."

"Glory hallelujah," Black said sarcastically, waiving me aside. Remus gave me an apologetic look as the rest of Black's crew burst out in laughter. It was more than obvious that he did not care. I walked quickly to the Ravenclaw table, attempting to walk off my humiliation.

"We've got him hooked," Gwyn said as I sat down. "Now he knows that you're a girl." The entire point of sending me over there with Hayden, according to Gwyn, was so that Black realized that I had other options and would get a move on.

"I doubt it," I said, mixing honey into my tea and taking a deep sip for comfort.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kate asked, leaning into the conversation and seeming intrigued for once.

"It's just that," I took a deep breath, knowing the immediate response to my answer, "that boys like him don't like girls like me."

"Girls like you?" Gwyn asked. "What do you mean?"

"Look at him," I said motioning over to the Gryffindor table. "He's beautiful, and I'm just average." There was a moment of silence. "Face it you guys, nothing is ever going to come of this operation. He never pays attention to me unless he has to." I was glad that they had finally noticed something wasn't right about me, even though they had only noticed because it concerned the Operation.

"That's not true, what about last night on the third floor?" Kate asked, always the first to defend me from myself.

"Look, can we just stop talking about this?" I asked, returning back to my tea. The truth of the matter was that I had heard Sirius Black talking about sneaking out to see someone and running into me. I knew that he hadn't really wanted to run into me.

"Are you okay?" Kate asked. I noticed that Gwyn had completely removed herself from the conversation.

"I'm dandy," I sighed, getting up from the table. I knew that there was no way Kate would give up on the conversation. I walked away from them, deciding to show up to my first class half an hour early. I really needed to be alone. They made it seem like he liked me, which he didn't. He never noticed I was alive unless I got in his way.

Sirius Black liked girls like Abarella Abbott, who always had perfect hair and perfect make-up. Sirius Black liked girls like Gwyn, girls who controlled everybody around them. He liked perfect girls. Not girls like me.. He would never like someone like me. I mean, not that I cared! I couldn't care less what he thought of me. But if that was true, I was fairly sure I wouldn't have let his ignorance towards my existence bother me.

* * *

About a week later, I sat at the table, playing with my spider shaped earrings. Halloween was in a week or so, and it being my favorite holiday, I felt the need to start the celebration early on. I was sitting at the breakfast table alone. The rest of the girls had a rather big Arithmancy assignment to work on, but seeing as how I took Ancient Runes that hour, I had nothing more to do than to ask a question and throw some rocks into the air. So, I had been sitting there the entire meal, completely enraptured in one of the Muggle books Kate always read. This one was a romance.

The girls and I had taken a break from Operation B.A. due to the recent increase of workload in all of our classes. We said to ourselves that we needed time to put together a solid plan, but that was just code for 'Our teachers have gone nuts this year, and we don't have time to breathe'. I had been having a fit of low self-esteem which was always happened to me around this time of the year. For the past week, I had kept to myself, still wearing the clothes Gwyn planned for me.

Apparently, guys were gawking at me, which I found seriously doubtful seeing as how the girls were telling me whatever necessary to get my self esteem back up. It seemed as if I could never talk to them about anything without one of them bringing up Operation Black Attack or my self esteem (or lack there of). I was a bit bitter over it, having to keep all my emotions to myself was something I wasn't quite used to. However, I was for now on break.

"I need to ask you something," said a voice from above me.

"Oh?" I asked, looking up from my book to see none other than Sirius Black. "What do you need to ask me?" Sirius Black had avoided me for the entirety of the prior week. It was as if I truly, utterly and completely didn't exist in his universe. Not that I cared.

"Well," he said, sitting down across from me. "I was wondering if you—" The sound of flapping wings everywhere cut across what he said next. I pointed to the owls above us, dropping the mail everywhere and shouted that I couldn't hear him. A frustrated expression took over his features. The hall quieted down eventually. He was about to start over again when Howard, my owl, dropped a package and a letter in front of me.

"Oh," I muttered, recognizing the handwriting on the package immediately. I immediately began blinking back tears. I couldn't believe I had forgotten..

"What is it?" he asked. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," I said. I was a few seconds away from full on crying. "I have to go now." I grabbed the package and letter, dashing out of the Great Hall. I was nearly at the Ravenclaw Commons when the tears started seriously threatening to spill from my eyes.

"You forgot your book!" I heard Black shout from behind me. I had no idea he was following me. I took a deep breath, afraid to close my eyes, knowing that tears were threatening to give me away any second now. I couldn't let that happen. My motto had always been "Never let them see you cry".

"Thanks," I turned around, dropping my head so as to get as much of my bangs in my face as possible. I put out my hand, expecting him to just give me the book.

"Are you okay?" he asked, slowly reaching out his arm to put the book in my hand.

"Honestly?" I asked, waiting for him to nod. "No, I'm not okay."

"What's wrong?"

"As if you care," I snorted.

"Come on, now," he chuckled. "I'm not _that_ far away from being a perfect gentleman."

"Black, could you please just give me the book?" I asked, infuriated. I wouldn't be waiting around for the book if it had been mine. However, it had been Kate's and I knew how much she cared for her books.

"Not unless you tell me what's bothering you so much first."

"Fine," I spat, whirling around to enter the commons. The tears were almost about to spill. However, before I got a step away from him, I felt his hand yank on my sleeve and whirl me around.

"I'm sorry," he breathed. He put the book in my free hand. "Please tell me what's wrong?"

"Nothing," I cried. "Nothing's wrong, everything is perfect." I couldn't believe I had let him see me cry. _Him_, of all people. I had let the infamous Sirius Black see me cry. I would never live down this moment. "Let me go."

"I did," he said, causing me to notice that he had let go of my arm moments before. "I don't think you want to leave," he said, giving me a half smile.

"It's just," I sighed, my voice cracking and giving away my emotion, "it's a package from my dad." He took me by the hand, ushering me to an isolated part of the hallway where no one could see us.

"Yeah?" he said, encouraging me to go on. I knew I shouldn't be talking to him about this, but I couldn't help it. All the girls were concerned with lately was bring him down rather than me. I couldn't talk to anyone about anything without Sirius Black being linked to the conversation in some way.

"Every year around the same time," I spoke through my tears, I usually had a hard time talking when I cried, "my dad sends me a package. And, and," I couldn't talk for a little bit. I tended to hyperventilate when I was upset, "this year I completely forgot."

"You forgot that he was going to send you a package?"

"No, it's not that," I said, wiping at my face with my sleeves. "The packages are special," I took another pause, "he sends them on the anniversary of my Mom's death."

"Oh," he whispered, barely audible. It seemed as if he had no idea how to react.

"I'm not making sense, am I?" I asked, breaking into a set of new sobs. I hated crying. "About five years ago, right before my first year at Hogwarts, my mom died."

"I'm sorry," he said, sweeping me into an awkward embrace. His arms were tight around my body, turning my brain to mush. The only person the embrace was awkward for was me.

"We, we," I started stuttering. This was not good, pretty soon, I wouldn't be able to speak. "We got into a really bad car accident one summer when they were taking me to my ballet lesson," inside my head, I was reliving the memory. "My dad and I were fine but," I took a deep breath, trying to regain my composure, "the entire passenger side of the car was flattened. It didn't even look like a car anymore.."

He was still hugging me. I couldn't speak anymore, and I was fairly sure he knew that because he hugged me tighter. I took deep breaths, begging the tears in my eyes to go back. He let go of me, his hands still on my elbows.

"You don't have to talk anymore if you don't want to," he said, seeming completely understanding of my frazzled estate.

"I just can't believe I forgot this year," I sighed. "I can't believe I forgot the day my own mother died."

"You didn't forget," he said, brushing a strand of my hair behind my ear. It was as if his touch sent shock waives through my body. I suddenly realized who I was talking to, who it was that was being so nice to me.

"I have to go," I muttered, grabbing my things and running towards the Commons.

"Wait, I—" I slammed the portrait hole on his words. I didn't need him to embarrass me after an emotional outpour like that. He probably thought I was crazy, grabbing him and sobbing on him like that in public. He probably thought I was needy, or over-emotional or something. I walked up to the Dorms, suddenly extremely tired. I always felt tired after I cried. I sat in my bed, pulling the curtains around it shut and fell asleep as soon as my head hit my pillow.

"Liz?" I heard Kate's voice as she nudged me awake. "Liz, it's time to go patrol. Do you want me to go without you?"

"Huh?" I asked, blinking awake. The room around me was oddly dark.

"You've been sleeping the entire day," she sounded rather concerned. "Do you want me to go without you?"

"No, no," I said, getting up and walking to the bathroom. "I'm fine."

"Are you sure?" she asked, still soundly oddly concerned. "I know you're not fine, I saw the package lying by your bed."

"Oh," I said, brushing my hair and then my teeth. "I'm fine now. I just needed to let everything out."

"I understand," she said, sounding relieved.

"I'm done with Operation Black Attack," I sighed, stepping out of the bathroom.

"What do you mean?" she asked, a bit in shock. I knew she wouldn't appreciate me telling her this after all the hard work they had all put into the effort.

"Black isn't that horrible of a person," I said, thinking back on what had happened earlier in the day.

"Are you sure?" she asked, making intense eye contact with me.

"No," I sighed after a moment or two. "I guess I've just been in a bad mood lately and am making up excuses to get out of promises."

"That's understandable," Kate said, giving me a weak smile.

"I'm doing much better though."

"Also understandable," she said. A few moments later, we were standing in front of the staircase. I made my way to the Third hall. During my hour of patrolling, I heard a few noises but nothing extremely suspicious. However, we were all extremely on edge seeing as how the recent breakout of vandalism had become a serious issue within the school.

* * *

That night, I tossed and turned in bed. I couldn't get to sleep. I had spent the entire day laying in my bed, and now that it was the time when I was supposed to be asleep, I found myself completely awake. However, I felt better than I had in a long time. Now that I knew why I had been down for the past week, it was easy to block everything off and begin feeling like myself again. There was no reason why I should let a silly boy get to me.

He didn't notice I was alive, so what? I'd make sure he knew I was alive by the end of next week. I'd also make sure that he knew he was human, and not God as he liked to believe. I sighed quietly, starting to feel exhausted. I was glad the next day was Sunday.

* * *

As much as I was dreading it, Monday eventually rolled around. Having spend the greater part of the weekend in bed, I was more than ready to face the new week. I had resolved many issues, telling myself that life was dandy as long as I was bringing Black down. It had actually given me new hope.

"Good morning class," Professor Sprout spoke up, her voice cracking. She had caught a rather wicked cold and thus, was hard to understand. "I've decided to give you all a bit of a break today," she paused to blow her nose. "Although, I suppose I need the break more than you all. I'm sure you're all buried under a great weight of homework from all your other teachers, which is why you have the rest of the class period to work on whatever you need to get done."

"Does this mean we can leave?" Black asked.

"No," the professor replied before breaking into an attack of coughs. "If I let you out early, Filch would have a field day. He's already been trying to get me fired for how messy the Greenhouse is."

"The one time I actually do my homework," I sighed, shifting through my bag, looking for something to do.

"It's ironic isn't it?" Remus asked.

"Huh?" I looked up from my endless treasure hunt. "Oh, yes it is. Ironic, I mean. Quite ironic indeed."

"Are you okay?"

"Just distracted," I replied. "I can't remember whether I finished my Potions essay or not.." I trailed off again. I was talking more to myself than to Remus, and I knew he was very much aware of that. "Aha!" I yelled, yanking the parchment out of my bag and thus, causing it to rip in half. "Oh no," I frowned, taping it with my wand and causing it to rejoin.

"Nice spell," Remus grinned, still watching me.

"Don't you have something to do?" I snapped. "Not meaning to be rude, or anything. I just get nervous when people watch me."

"No, I don't," he sighed, rubbing his eyes with the palms of his hands. "Besides, I wouldn't be able to concentrate anyway."

"What do you mean?"

"The full moon," he said, giving me a weak smile. "I can't sleep right before… it happens."

"Oh," I muttered. "I'm sorry… It must be horrible."

"It could be worse," he shrugged. There was an uncomfortable silence for a moment or two. "The worst part is the looks."

"What do you mean?" I asked. It seemed as if he were just throwing random words at me. They made no sense.

"The looks," he sighed. "Not everyone is as open to someone who's… different… as you are." He smiled. "Don't be offended by this," he took a moment to contemplate whether he should say his next sentence or not, "but I was actually surprised that you picked me to be your partner after I found out you knew."

"Why?" I was a bit taken aback. Did he think I was a bigot?

"Well, I never knew you," he said, "or Kate," he added quickly. "I didn't know you two were so understanding. I mean, I'm only assuming that she understands as well. Correct me if I'm wrong." He looked a bit worried by the thought that Kate could dislike him.

"No," I grinned. "She's completely fine with it. It's not a choice, we get it."

"That's great," he said. "Does she ever… say anything about me?"

"What?" I asked, completely off-guard.

"Nothing," he yelped quickly. "Nothing at all. I have to go. Uhm. Yes, I must go because Sirius looks… confused. Yes, he looks confused." He got up quickly, causing several pieces of parchment resting on the desk to go flying around the room. However, he practically ran away from me without glancing in the direction of the papers.

"What was that about?" Kate asked, coming over to help me pick up the papers.

"As if I know," I laughed. "It was something about you, I think."

"Me?" She asked, her voice switching to a higher pitch.

"Yes, I think so," I said. She gave me a radiant smile, picking up the last of the papers and sitting on the chairs with me.

* * *

"Do we have enough time to restart the Operation?" Gwyn asked suddenly in lunch.

"Sure," I shrugged. "Let's make it more fun for me though."

"What do you mean?" She asked, giving me a curious look as she stuck a forkful of mashed potatoes into her mouth.

"I just don't have any fun," I shrugged.

"Alright," she laughed. "Well, it's time for more missions like the library."

"Perfect," I smiled.

"Where's Demi?" Kate asked, looking up from a rather challenging game of Sudoku.

"I sent her on a bit of a mission," Gwyn laughed. "She was starting to bother me."

"Right," I muttered, looking anywhere but at her face. I got up from the table.

"Where are you going?" Gwyn asked.

"I have to give Remus back some of his notes," I said, taking the parchment out of my bag. "Our papers got mixed up in class today."

"It's perfect," she said, giving me a toothy grin. "It will give you a chance to go be by Black. Compliment him on something."

"But if he tries to carry a conversation," Kate said, flipping her brown hair behind her shoulder, "ignore him. Leave him wanting more." Gwyn and I both gave her a questioning look. "My sister always says it," she shrugged.

"Right," I nodded. "So," I said, beginning to reiterate all their points, "notice he's alive, and compliment him on something. However, if he tries to start a conversation, walk away... right?"

"Brilliant," Gwyn said with another wide grin. I gave her another nod before turning around and walking away from the Ravenclaw table. I concentrated on my posture. I felt like I was marching. Was I marching? Sure, I didn't want to talk to Black but that was no reason to march. Surely, he'd notice if I was marching. I tried to make my walk more lucid.

Great, now I probably looked like I was drunk. How did I normally walk? Why was I forgetting how to walk? It was just walking. Alright, I had distracted myself enough to be able to walk normally again. Why was I putting so much thought into this? Black was looking at me. Why was he looking at me? Why did he just look away? Was I not good enough for him to look at? The nerve of him… Oh lord. He was looking at me again. Do I make eye-contact? Do I look away?

I made eye-contact for about three seconds before looking away. This was way too complicated. I was putting too much thought into it. As they had always told us in the summer acting program at Salem's Summer Institute for Young Witches and Wizards, you had to act as naturally as you breathed. If you thought when you were acting, you spent too much time thinking and not enough time acting. I took a deep breath, forcing my brain to shut off.

"Come to confess another lie?" Black asked, giving me an irritated look.

"Remus?" I asked, completely ignoring his existence. "I ended up with some of your notes in Herbology."

"Ah," he smiled. "Yes, I was looking for you earlier, however," his eyes darted towards where Kate and Gwyn sat, "I wasn't sure whether I should've interrupted you."

"Feel free to at anytime," I smiled, turning around to leave. "Black?" I added before I started walking, causing him to look up. "I like your hair."

"Thanks," he replied, sounding completely unsure of himself. I walked away, and back to the Ravenclaw table.

"Did you compliment his hair?" Kate asked before I sat down.

"Yes," I replied, wondering if I still had the microphone from the library somewhere on my clothes. "Why?"

"He kept touching it after you left," Kate said, breaking into a fit of giggles.

"He's so pathetic," Gwyn said, rolling her eyes.

"I don't know," I said, scrunching up my face. "I do actually like his hair long." This caused Kate to cock an eyebrow at me. "What?" I asked, when Gwyn gave me the exact same look. "I just said I liked his hair long, not that I wanted to have his children!"

"Simmer down," Kate said, giving me an understanding smile. "No reason to get so defensive."

"I'm not defensive!" I yelped. Okay, maybe I _was_ being defensive. But I didn't like Black. Seriously. Not at all… Right?

"Alright," Gwyn spoke, interrupting the flow of my thoughts, "enough idle chatting; it's time to get back to the plan."

* * *

A/N: I like how the first half took me a week to write, and then the last half took thirty-seven minutes. Honestly? I didn't like that chapter at all. It took quite a while to write and re-write. 


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: I just got done watching the trailer for The Dark Knight for the fortieth time since Heath Ledger's death. I'm so excited for the movie! It looks like he's done a great job of characterization. –sighs- I miss him. :( Does anyone (except who I reply to) ever actually read these?

Queen O' Randomness: So I totally got you and GoTheDistance confused in the last Author's Note.. I hope you don't mind too much!! I'm totally sorry, and to make it up to you, I'll do you twice on this one!!

Sovereignty'd: Haha I'm not really offended, by the way. And I'm actually considering that possibility! Thanks for the idea.

Siriusly777: I love Sirius so much! He makes my day.

Won-Won-Weirdo: I had fun! And I got a page of writing done, so that was good.

Xingo: Thanks for the review! Liz makes me giggle.

Pseudonymismypseudonym: Thanks for picking up on the Remus/Kate thing. Some people might miss it even though I try to make it obvious. I love your reviews! Also, I love Hayden's character; he's possibly my favorite male at this point. I have no idea what I'm going to do with him, however.

Queen O' Randomness: Ah. I think we're even now. ;)

Btw to whoever it was that asked, Invader Tar comes from Invader Zim (Tar is the first three letters of my name). So… I pretty much promised you a kiss in this chapter. Heh. Well, here it is, an hour early (by my time). Happy V-day!

* * *

"All we really need to do is make him notice you as more than just a girl," Kate said. "We need him to notice you're special."

"Precisely," Gwyn said with a bright grin that slowly turned into a confused expression. "How do we do that?"

"Well," Kate sighed, "Elizabeth, you're going to hate me for this, but… Well, you saw how well Black responded to you and Hayden."

"Yeah," I gave her an evil glare. "And?" She had better not be making the point I thought she was making.

"We could.. do it again," Kate said, flinching at the thought of my response.

"No," I shouted, catching the attention of everyone around us. The table of Ravenclaws went silent for a moment.

"Why not?" Kate asked once the volume of the room began building up again. "You would both know it was false; there would be no harm."

"I said _no_," I spoke through my teeth. "I can still feel Hayden's saliva on my cheek from when he kissed me the other day, I don't need any more reasons to hang around him."

"You're crazy," Gwyn sighed, obviously frustrated. "Any girl in this school would do anything to date him."

"Well, I'm not any girl," I said, crossing my arms and leaning away from the table. It was childish of me, but I didn't want them to talk me into yet another thing I didn't want to be a part of.

"Give me a reason why not," Gwyn said, imitating my body language.

"Because," I replied haughtily.

"A valid reason," Kate snapped. "Give us one with logic behind it."

"I don't want to," I seemed to be getting more immature by the minute. "Don't make me."

"But you have to!" Gwyn laughed pleasantly. "It'll work."

"Fine," Kate sighed, irritated at the power struggle between Gwyn and me, "how about a compromise?"

"What do you mean?" I asked. She had recaptured my attention.

"We'll make it look like you're dating Hayden," she said, stopping to think it out for a second or so. "Little actions here and there to make it look like you two like each other, but you won't actually have to _date _him."

"Now you're talking," I smiled, self-satisfied. "Really though, what's the point of all this?"

"We just need Black to realize you're a girl," Gwyn shrugged. "And a girl with options, at that."

"Should we tell Hayden?" Kate asked. "No, I think it'd be better if he didn't know," she sighed, answering her own question. She had been doing that quite a bit lately. "He's bound to play along. He always responds to whatever girl it is that's chatting him up."

"Yes, and it's rather annoying," Demi spoke from behind me, causing me to yelp with a jolt. "Here's your coffee," she said bitterly, handing Gwyn a mug. "Double sugar, double cream, just like you wanted." She paused to sit down beside me and, yet again, ignored my existence. "Why are we discussing Hayden's love life?"

"Liz is going to fake-date him," Gwyn said as she threw her coffee a disgusted look, "to make Black notice she's a girl with options."

"What?" Demi snapped. "_You_ can't date him!" She gave me the same disgusted look Gwyn had given her coffee a moment before. "You're not good enough to—"

"Shut up!" rang out Gwyn's shrill voice. "Demetria, you know not what you speak of."

"No," I said, giving Demi an amused look. "Let her continue. I'm not good enough to what?"

"Nothing," she muttered. "Forget I said anything."

"Whatever," I said, losing all interest yet again. "Next time, watch what you say."

"Watch what you say," she mimicked me in a childish manner.

"You're such a child," I said, getting up and leaving the table. It wasn't long before I felt Kate's presence by my side.

"What's wrong with her?"

"Can you blame her?" Kate asked, tucking her belongings into her bag hurriedly. "Gwyn's treating her like dirt lately."

"She deserves it," I shrugged.

"When'd _you_ turn into such a horrid person?"

* * *

"Say something to him," Gwyn pressured me for the twentieth time the next day at breakfast. She had been trying to get me to flirt with Hayden all morning.

"For the last time," I spoke slowly, exaggerating each vowel, "**no**."

"Would you please just do as she asks?" Kate said. She had been chiming in at random times, also attempting to get me to woo Hayden. However, their efforts were useless.

"Come on!" Gwyn said in an attempt to persuade me. "If we act now, we can have him hooked by the Hogsmeade trip at the end of this week!"

"Would you two just let me eat in peace?" I said, slamming down my piece of toast, which flopped lamely. Well, there went _my_ dramatic statement.

"No," they both spoke at the same time.

"Fine!" I yelped, getting up and marching out of the Great Hall. I had lost quite a bit of weight due to all my early exits at meals, which were all the fault of Katherine and Gwyneth. I passed by the Gryffindor table, scanning it quickly to see who was there. What ditzes. Black wasn't even at breakfast that morning. Come to think of it, neither was Lupin.

"Great," I sighed, walking into the dungeons to find Black's form, once again, in the corner. He was leaning against the cold walls, hugging his knees. For all I could tell, he hadn't noticed me yet. I decided to turn back around and wait in the library until classes started. I hadn't the slightest clue whether Black would make fun of me for crying or not, but I certainly wouldn't put it past him. As I turned to go, however, I heard him mutter something from behind me.

"What?" I asked, whirling around. I immediately realized my stupidity and cursed the Gods for giving me book smarts rather than common sense. I should've just ignored the lothario and gone. So what if he had decided to make fun of me? I shouldn't care.

"I said," he stood up, crossing the room and coming over and standing by me, "I don't bite."

"Really?" I said, giving him one of his own bored looks; unfortunately, he seemed to be immune to them.

"Of course not," he said, giving me a grin. "That's Moony." He took another step towards me as he said this.

"Moony?" I asked. I had no idea what he was talking about or whether he was still speaking English. He took the pause in conversation to get even closer.

"You know," he shrugged, burying his hands deep in his pockets, "Remus." He took yet another step closer. The good news was that now, he couldn't take another step. The bad news was that he was completely invading my personal space.

"Oh," I said, clinging on to the strap of my backpack for dear life. I gulped very hard. Suddenly, I had no spit. "Wh-Why do you call him that?" Great. I started out rough, but I had finished strong, despite his marvelous scent.

"You know," he brought his lips to my hear, having to lean forth only slightly to do so, "werewolf."

"Oh," I muttered yet again. Around him, that seemed to be the only word I knew. "That's fantastic," I said, taking a step backwards.

"Not really," he shrugged, taking a step towards me. "I doubt _he_ thinks it's fantastic."

"Well," I swallowed very hard, I was seconds away from dying of dehydration, "every dark cloud has a silver lining." I gave him a weak smile as I took another step backwards.

"And every silver lining has a touch of gray," he said, taking another step towards me. I could feel his body next to mine, how firm it was.. No, must think about other things! Like how much of a git Black is. Yes, perfect. He gave me a grin of his own. It was a bit lopsided, and completely half hearted. In fact, he looked exhausted. There were dark circles beneath his eyes. "Don't you think so?"

"What?" I said, trying my hardest to remember what we had been talking about before I had noticed his gray eyes, with the tiny speck of green in them on the bottom right side of the iris. He had amazing eyes. I took the awkward pause to take yet another step backwards.

"I don't know," he shrugged. "Moony won't be in Herbology tomorrow." He took yet another step towards me. I began feeling like his prey.

"Why?" I asked, taking yet another step back, and hitting the wall. Oh great; he had cut off my escape route.

"Tonight is a full moon," he whispered as groups of students began arriving. He looked at me, giving me another hurt grin before snapping it back and walking away from me as if I never existed. I took several deep breaths, attempting to calm myself down.

"What was that about?" Kate asked, as soon as we had sat down in class.

"I'm glad you saw that too," I said, still in shock. "I was afraid I was dreaming."

"The question is," Kate said, giving me a wicked smile, "was it a fantasy or a nightmare?"

* * *

"Well?" Kate asked as we waited for Demi and Gwyn to join us at the Ravenclaw table for lunch. "You never answered my question."

"What question?" I asked, chugging my tea in order to get to the meal itself. Since I had walked out on another meal, I was famished.

"Was it a fantasy or a nightmare?" She asked with a sweet smile to cover up the serious nature of the question.

"Uh," I said, a bit unsure. Why was I unsure? I should be sure. I was sure. Okay, maybe not completely but almost. Almost is good enough, right? "A nightmare," I said at last. Nice save. "And a complete nightmare, at that." I looked up and over to the Gryffindor table, to see him chatting up Abarella Abbott, having forgotten about his seemingly troubled mind this morning.

"Right," Kate said, with another knowing smile, following my gaze and seeing who I was staring at. I hated how she could completely read my mind.

"No!" I yelped. "I'm serious. It was a nightmare!"

"I believe you," Kate said, giving me another smile.

"It was a nightmare," I said, gritting my teeth.

"Who are you trying to convince?" She laughed.

"Shut up," I said, finishing my tea. She didn't know what she was talking about. It was a total nightmare. In fact, it had been so traumatic, that I couldn't stop thinking about it. Well, I hoped that was why I couldn't stop thinking about it.

* * *

"It was a nightmare," I muttered to myself as I sat in the bath. While everyone was relaxing in the Commons, I had decided to take a bath in the Prefect's bathroom, needing to calm myself down. I had a tendency to talk out-loud whenever I had a problem. When I was a child, I would lecture my teddy bear, Bonsai, on why something was a right choice or not. But now, being in Hogwarts and without my beloved Bonsai (I had told everyone I hadn't brought him, but he was, in fact, in hiding at the very bottom of my trunk), I had nothing to do but talk to the painting of the mermaid on the wall.

"It was a nightmare," I told her for the fourth time that night. "I mean, being with him is torture. He's a git." I took a deep breath, closing my eyes and letting my body sink lower into the hot water of the tub. "He's self-centered, he's dull, and he never has anything interesting to say." I opened one eye half way, to see if she looked convinced.

"Why am I telling you?" I asked, quite offended to see her looking bored. "You're just a painting!" She gave me a rather harsh look. "I'm sorry," I sighed. "I'm just so confused." I took a deep breath, making my body return to its relaxed stage. "I'm telling you, it's a nightmare. His disgusting… firm, strong… disgusting… body so close to mine, it was a nightmare." I was repeating myself.

"I don't know who I'm trying to convince here," I muttered, closing my eyes again. "Either way, I don't fancy him. I can't fancy him. I won't fancy him. He's a disgusting, womanizing, self-centered, uninteresting, ridiculous, narrow-minded, socially-challenged, egotistical **snob**."

"Who is?" asked a voice from behind me, causing me to emit a shrill scream. I turned my head in the bath to see none other than Black. Speaking of the devil…

"Get the fuck out of here!" I said, glad that the bubbles covered everything. Although he wouldn't be able to see anything, this was a rather compromising situation.

"I'm going, I'm going," he sighed, bending down and picking up a few of the candles. "I just needed a few props for a special night with a special lady."

"What poor girl are you raping tonight?" I asked, forcing as much venom into the sentence as possible.

"It's not rape if you're willing," he smiled. "And wanting," he added, laughing.

"Right," I said, rolling my eyes.

"Whatever," he shrugged indifferently. "It was nice meeting your acquaintance but I must leave, I can't leave Abarella waiting," he bit his lip, realizing he'd said her name. "Ah well," he said, "you won't tell, will you?"

"I have more interesting things to talk about than the girl you're screwing _this_ week," I said, dismissing him.

"That's my girl!" he laughed, completely impervious to my malicious words.

"See?" I said to the painting after he was gone. "He's a complete nightmare." She nodded, giving me a knowing smile.

* * *

"Black's going for a walk tonight after dinner," Gwyn said when I finally got back to the Dorms after my bath. "He goes for a walk every Tuesday."

"How do you know that?" I stared at the outfit she had chosen for me.

"I've been making Demi follow him lately," she said with a smile. "It keeps her out of my hair, and gets actual use out of her. It's like shooting two birds with one stone." Alright, Kate was right. I was beginning to feel terrible over this entire Demi thing.

"Right," I sighed, sitting on my bed. "So, why am I going to meet him?" Or at least that was what I thought I was going to have to do. Kate was in the corner, working on her Muggle technology so they would be able to see and hear everything that went on.

"Well," Gwyn said with a smile, "you're going to be going on a walk with Hayden at the same time."

"Okay," I sighed, using a quick-dry spell on my hair to get it back to its normal straight texture.

"Brilliant," Gwyn said. What was that, her new catch-phrase?

"Wow," Kate said, looking up from her difficult task, "did I hear you right? Did you just agree to something without putting up a fight first?"

"I know," I said sarcastically, "I was surprised myself. Alas, here we are."

"Well," Kate sighed, putting down the technology. "It's definitely broken, I'll be able to fix it in the morning, but until then you're on your own."

"I'm just glad she agreed with us," Gwyn said with a laugh. "It made convincing her much easier." I shrugged in response, not really in the mood to use actual words. I just wanted Black to know that he wasn't the only one with options. If Hayden Heathers, Hogwarts' Certified Heart-Breaker, didn't make him realize that, no boy on planet Earth would.

* * *

"Hayden?" I asked, coming down into the Commons after about an hour of grooming.

"Yeah?" He asked, barely looking up from an engaging game of chess he was playing against Patrick Peters.

"Do you want to go on a walk with me?" I asked, walking over to their table. He looked up at me, a smile taking over his face.

"I'm losing anyway," he muttered as he got up. "Let's call it a draw then, shall we Patrick?" Patrick gave him a wicked look before realizing I was there. His cheeks burned crimson as he looked away and back at the game. He was an odd one. Hayden grabbed his jacket, pulling it over the sweater and zip-up hoodie he was already wearing. He always wore several jackets whenever we went outside.

"Does he talk to you?" I asked as we started walking towards the grounds. Hayden seemed more than happy to get a break from Patrick.

"When no one's around," he shrugged. "It's not that big of a deal if someone doesn't talk."

"I didn't say it was."

"You all act like it is," he said, stretching as we exited the castle. "He's alienated by most of Ravenclaw."

"Well," I said, searching the grounds for Black, "if he would say something once in a while…"

"Why should he if he doesn't want to?" Hayden seemed almost… offended. "I don't get what the big deal is."  
"Alright!" I said, patting his arm. "Calm down, child. Let's talk about something else."

"Fine," he said stubbornly, kicking a rock. "Why are we out here?"

"We're taking a walk," I smiled, quite content with my answer.

"Well, I know," he said. "Let me rephrase. Why am _I_ here? You've been avoiding me since the make-over." He tugged on the ends of his scarf, keeping his body-language languid despite the amount of emotion.

"I'm sorry," I said, locking my arm through his as we continued to walk. "I didn't mean to, I've just been busy lately."

"With Operation B. A.?" He asked, causing me to jump. "Demi told me," he shrugged at my shocked expression. "I think what you're doing is childish."

"But you don't like Black," I said, remembering the day in the Charms when Black had humiliated Hayden.

"He's okay," he laughed. "His arrogance doesn't make your operation just."

"That's debatable," I muttered. "He needs to realize that he's not God."

"And who are you to do that for him?"

"A concerned citizen?" I asked after a few seconds of silence. For the life of me, I couldn't figure out why Hayden cared so much about what I did to Black.

"Right," he sighed. "All I'm saying is that don't let it take up all your time."

"You want me all to yourself, huh?" I teased, laughing.

"Maybe," Hayden winked, his cheeks turning slightly pink. "Or maybe I just want you around so I can… do this!" He tackled me, bringing me to the ground where he started tickling me. I always hated being tickled.

"Stop it!" I laughed. "Seriously, stop it or I'll kill you!"

"How can you want me to stop it," he said, continuing to tickle me, "when you're laughing so hard right now?" See? That was why I hated being tickled.

"Get a room," said a voice from above us. I knew immediately it was Black. Hayden rolled off of me, laying beside me on the ground and staring up at Black, who was holding hands with Abarella Abbott.

"Get a life," I replied, getting up and dusting myself off. Hayden followed suite, causing us to stand with Black and Abbott at a sort of stand-off.

"Wow you look so cute!" Abarella squeaked. "I've been meaning to tell you that I really like how you've been dressing lately! It's so great to see someone start to care!"

"Yeah," I said, plastering the fakest of smiles onto my face, "thank you. We have to go." I pulled Hayden by his scarf and walked away. I looked back when we were a few meters away, and noticed that Black was looking at us. I laughed, snaking my arm through Hayden's so that our arms were intertwined.

"Are you trying to make him jealous?" He asked, immediately seeing through our plan.

"Well," I said, debating whether I should lie to him or not. "Would you believe 'no'?" I asked, waiting for Hayden to shake his head no. "Then yes. Yes, I am."

"Ah," he sighed, shaking his head. "You're doing a marvelous job, even though I don't approve. I can't believe I just let you use me."

"_Me_ use _you_?" I asked. "You're the one who attacked me!"

"Attacked, eh?" He asked. Before I knew it, he launched himself on me again. He pinned me against the grass, tickling me until I was laughing infidelities and swearing to use a curse on him once I was done laughing. He stopped tickling me eventually, getting off of me and rolling onto his side again.

We laid there side by side, staring into the clouds for a moment or two. I was happier than I had been in a long time. I watched a flock of birds fly across the sky. My happy mood ended, however, when I followed the flock to my right side and, coincidentally, saw Black snogging Abarella Abbott.

"Let's go back to the castle," I said. "I've had enough nature for one day."

"Okay," Hayden muttered, in shock due to my severe mood change. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," I said, crossing my arms across my chest. "I'm just sick of watching Black attempt to suck Abbott's face off." For some reason, this made Hayden laugh uncontrollably for a moment or so.

* * *

"That was a catastrophe," Gwyn said. 

"Not necessarily," Kate replied, causing Gwyn to shoot her a death glare. Gwyn had been lecturing me on the importance of making Black notice me for the past several minutes.

"What do you mean?" Gwyn asked, crossing her arms over her chest. Although I wasn't the one she was asking, I was oddly intimidated.

"Well," Kate stood up, pacing around the room, "he decided to eat her face when he saw Hayden attack Liz…"

"And?" Gwyn snapped, impatience written all over her face.

"It could be a sign of jealousy," Kate's answer made Gwyn's face light up almost immediately.

"It's true!" She shrieked. "He started being all over her when he saw Hayden all over you.." She seemed lost in thought.

"What was up with that, by the way?" Kate asked, seeming utterly perplexed. For lack of a better hiding spot, they had been watching me from the third floor window and thus could not hear or see us very well.

"He decided to tickle me," I said, rolling my eyes and remembering the torture. A shiver ran through my spine.

"You hate being tickled," Kate said, bringing to mind an incident in which I had kicked her hard in the stomach after she had tickled me for two straight minutes. She had had a bruise for nearly three weeks.

"I know," I said, closing my eyes. "I doubt it worked, anyway," I sighed. "I heard Black earlier, he was bragging about screwing Abbott later tonight." Alright, maybe it wasn't the complete truth, but it got the point across. And this way, they wouldn't make fun of me for being caught in the bath by Black, of all people, for weeks on end.

"That's odd," Gwyn said, snapping out of her daze. "I could've sworn the Gryffindors had Quidditch practice tonight."

"How do you know that?" I asked, a bit in shock. I had no idea her spying had been so extensive.

"Demi was complaining about how our team didn't get to practice because Gryffindor had the field," Gwyn said, waiving the subject aside.

"Wait," I said, still confused, "why would Demi care whether our quidditch team had the field or not?"

"Didn't I tell you?" Gwyn asked, seeming absorbed in her own world. "She made the quidditch team."

"That's wonderful!" I said, jumping up from the bed.

"Yeah, yeah," Gwyn seemed completely indifferent. "Now back to Black and Abbott.."

* * *

"It's getting ridiculous," I huffed as Kate and I made our way across Hogsmeade. The trip had finally arrived despite my pleas to slow time down. Kate and I were walking to the Hog's Head to meet Gwyn and Demi for our traditional Hogsmeade meeting.

"What do you mean?" Kate asked, seeming confused. I didn't blame her. I had a habit of speaking out at random times, assuming that if I knew what I was talking about, so did Kate.

"Oh," I said, remembering that I hadn't said anything about the subject beforehand, "I meant about Demi and Gwyn. It's getting ridiculous. I can't believe she didn't tell us Demi made the team."

"I know," Kate sighed, seeming as irritated as I was. "I don't know why Gwyneth is acting the way she is."

"She used to be best friends with Demetria," I said, remembering their complete synchronization. "Gwyn treats her like dirt now."

"I think it's because she knows she can," Kate said quietly. If I hadn't been so used to her voice, I wouldn't have been able to hear her against the intense wind.

"I think so, too," I replied, having realized the words were true as she said them. I couldn't keep myself from reflecting on the past, and how we all used to get along. I had no idea how things had gotten so rotten, or why, but as horrible as it sounded in my own head, I thanked the cosmos that I wasn't in Demi's place. I was thankful for being on Gwyn's good side.

"Woah," Kate muttered, opening the door to The Hog's Head.

"Woah is right," I stepped beside her and looked inside. The usually empty bar was packed. "What is going on here?" We fought our way through the crowd, attempting to reach Gwyn and Kate who were sitting at the only not over-flooded table around.

"I think kids are trying to get a scare," Kate chucked, looking around at the students. "Tomorrow _is_ Halloween, after all."

"This is bizarre," I said, fighting my way past a table of Fifth years to sit at the table with Gwyn and Kate. "They shouldn't be allowed in here!"

"I agree," Gwyn said, sticking her nose up in the air. "This is our place, not theirs. Besides, it's only this crowded once a year, before Halloween." Having her agree with me made me see how ludicrous I was being. We didn't own the place. So what if it was packed? I should've been happy for the owners of the bar.

"Is that who I think it is?" Gwyn said, pointing to the left of my shoulder. I turned around to see Sirius Black and his group of miscreants coming inside the door.

"Ugh!" I sighed in frustration. "This day just keeps getting worse and worse!"

"Oh come on," Kate laughed, "you could use this as practice."

"Plus," Gwyn added, "he just passed Abarella Abbott's table, I think something must have happened."

"They broke up," Demi piped up.

"They were dating?" Kate, Gwyn and I asked at the same time.

"Yeah," Demi nodded, looking delighted to have captured all the attention. "Apparently he dumped her because she wouldn't put out." I felt a sour taste in my mouth, my eyes falling on Amor Diggory who was sitting directly across the bar from me, and staring at me. I could not believe it. Black and Diggory were basically the same person. I never thought I'd say this, but I actually felt bad for Abarella. I knew what it was like to be in the same position she was in right now.

"He's disgusting," I sighed.

"He's filth," Kate added.

"He's repulsive," Demi said.

"And he's coming over," Gwyn said with a laugh, mortifying me.

"Is he really?" I asked, looking to Kate for absolute verification since I was afraid of looking myself. She nodded, seeming absolutely worried about me. "Why? What have I done to deserve this?" I said, rather loudly. Alright, I was being melodramatic and pretty noisy but the bar was so packed that I seriously doubted that anyone would hear me if I cried bloody murder.

"We have the only slightly empty table," Kate shrugged. She looked up, and then down, blushing madly. As oblivious as I had been to Kate lately, I still knew who it was that she had made eye-contact with to make her blush in such a way.

"Hello, ladies!" James Potter said, pulling back a chair and sitting down. "Is it okay if we share this table with you?"

"Why ask? You're already sitting," I muttered. Somehow, despite all odds, Black and Potter heard me.

"What was that?" Potter asked, seeming a bit intimidated.

"Ignore it," Black said, taking the seat between Potter and me, "she's a feisty one." I rolled my eyes as Lupin sat down, opposite the table from Kate, and Pettigrew sat between Lupin and Demi.

"Shut up, Black," I said, only loud enough for him to hear me as I pretended to take a drink from my Butter Beer.

"Why should I?" He asked in the same manner. Pretty soon the entire table dismissed us and what they perceived to be our silence and returned to their conversations, leaving us alone. Fantastic.

"This is my day with my friends," I said, harshly. "Play nice. I want to have a good time."

"I can arrange that if you want," he winked. "I just need your permission first. You know, I don't force a girl into anything unless she's willing, which they all always are." He was attempting to play off of the conversation we had while I was bathing but ended up reminding me of what he had done to Abarella.

"Pardon me if I don't believe you," I said, shooting a meaningful in Abbott's direction.

"Oh please," he chuckled, "don't tell me you're one of those girls who believe the gossip around the school."

"What if I am?" I asked, looking around the table and realizing that none of my friends were noticing my conversation with Black. I felt abandoned and without help. "Of what importance is it to you?" He opened his mouth to say something, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath, pressing the bridge of his nose.

"Why are you so difficult?" he asked after a moment, shaking his head slowly. He seemed as if he had completely given up.

"Why are you everywhere I go?" I retorted.

"I won't be anymore," he scoffed. "I find your company completely and utterly unsatisfactory." I turned away from him to cringe as I felt Kate's nails dig into my leg.

"Be nice if you want him to like you," she said, her lips a hair away from my ears.

"I'm sorry," I said, turning to Black. I dug my nails into the palm of my hand. This Operation was torture. Black was the most irritating human being I had ever had the misfortune of meeting.

"Seriously?" he asked as he coughed up his Butter Beer. He seemed completely astonished and caught off-guard. I nodded. "I never thought this day would come," he laughed.

"Don't press your luck," I said through gritted teeth.

"Come on," he said, leaning back in his chair. "Relax. I'm not as horrible as you think I am."

"I doubt that," I muttered.

"What was that?" he asked.

"I said, I love cats," I said. I'd rather not have him know I was acting. "You know, I'm trying to start a conversation," I said after getting a perplexed look form him.

"Oh," he said, "I'm more of a dog person myself." For some reason, this caught the attention of his friends, and made Pettigrew spew Butter Beer out of his nose and Lupin's body shake as he laughed. I had never seen Lupin look so happy.

"What's so funny?" Gwyn asked, seeming as lost as I was. Good. I hadn't missed some sort of inside joke. However, there was no answer, only continuous laughter. It was then that I noticed that the only one of my friends talking was Gwyn, who was flirting up a storm with Potter, as I had expected.

Kate, who was sitting right beside me, looked embarrassed to be caught breathing. She would look up occasionally, only to see Lupin staring at her intently, blush fiercely and look back down. It was a continuous cycle, repeating itself every few minutes. Demi, on the other hand, who was sitting between Pettigrew and Gwyn, looked utterly uncomfortable by Pettigrew's presence and was keeping to herself a lot more than usual. I felt horrid. Potter and his friends had ruined our tradition.

"Right," I said, once the laughter had calmed down. "That's fantastic." I was rather angry over their interruption now that I noticed how horrid of a time Demi was having. I was fairly sure Black heard it through my tone.

"What's wrong?" he asked, tilting his head as his friends returned to their non-stop childish joking. Gwyn endlessly flirted with Potter while Lupin played eye-tag with Kate and Demi sunk into herself.

"As if you care," I snorted, returning back to my apathetic attitude. This time, Kate was too absorbed with Lupin to notice my complete lack of manners. I laid back in my chair, working double time to breathe as a Fifth year bumping into Black caused him to draw his chair closer to mine. His scent was completely enthralling, as if his extraordinary eyes weren't enough. I felt a burst of butterflies in my stomach. I fought very hard to kill every last one of them.

"I asked what was wrong," he said, seeming at the end of his rope, "so obviously I care." He made me uneasy. Yes, that was it, uneasy, and nothing else.

"Your friends are ruining our tradition," I frowned, my mind too clouded with obscure thoughts to think up a good lie on time.

"Oh," he said, looking around the table to notice what I was saying. "Well, Kate and Gwyn look to be having a good time playing with my friends' hearts." He gave Gwyn a disgusted look.

"Yes, but look at Demi," I said, pointing at her sitting across the table from us. I was actually rather surprised that he knew my friends' names. We had gone to school together for six years, but anyone as self-absorbed as him would fail to notice the color of the sky.

"She always looks that way," he said, shrugging, "even when she's eating lunch with you three." As much as I hated admitting it, he was right. We had all been alienating Demi lately.

"Wait," I said, his words finally catching up to me, "Did you say _always_?" I waited for a pink shade to take over his cheeks. "Sirius Black, do you watch me at lunch?" I watched the shade of pink turn slightly darker. "That's a bit eerie, don't you think?"

"Not when it's me," he shrugged playfully, laughing it off. "Upon the _few_ occasions that I have thrown a _glance_ in your way, I've noted that you've been returning said glance."

"You lie!" I shoved him playfully. I could remember only making eye-contact with him twice or so over meals. "Besides, you usually skip meals."

"Oh!" he said, absolutely delighted with himself, "so you notice when I'm gone?" I got a head-rush, realizing what I had said. I felt like putting my head down to breathe for a second or two. This was embarrassing for me, although it shouldn't have been. I shouldn't have cared. The only reason I ever looked at him was because of the Operation.

I sighed, propping my elbows on the table, and resting my head in my hands. I had never blushed this badly before in my life. I could literally feel all the blood from my body emptying into my face. It felt horrid. I couldn't think or breathe clearly. The last time I had a reaction like this was when Diggory had found out that I liked him and confronted me about it.

"What's wrong?" I heard Black whisper a centimeter away from my ear. I turned my face towards him, still resting my head in my hands. "You're blushing," he noted, smiling and seeming absolutely complacent.

"I am not," I said weakly, not bothering to move further away so as to get away from his scent and be able to think clearly again. As much as his thought-stopping scent bothered me, it drew me into itself, fascinating me and leaving me wanting more.

"No," he laughed, brushing a strand of my hair behind my ear, "I think it's cute." He moved in slowly, closing his eyes and I instinctively closed mine, waiting for him to cross the last centimeter between us.

* * *

A/N: **AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA**!!!! How much do you hate me, seriously? Go ahead, admit it. You hate me. 


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: So I'm starting to feel a bit bad for the cliffhanger at the end of the last chapter, seeing as how it took me for ever to post this chapter, and the beginning is very cruel of me.. And you've all been so kind! I got more reviews for last chapter than for any other chapter before! It was actually the amount of response the chapter got that finally persuaded me to sit down and write a week after posting the last chapter.

**Belliesgonagetcha**: I don't know how I do it. I was so giddy with evilness that night!

**PseudonymismyPseudonym**: I thought that was the best/worst cliffhanger I could've left, but who knows? I mean, this chapter could always end worse. As for Hayden, I still haven't decided his outcome, though I have an idea or two.

**TheSpiritOfHogwarts**: Yeah, I really like how Sirius' character came out. I guess that's why I like prequels better. You have more freedom with characters.

**Xingo**: I'm glad, you're basically the only one.

**Queen o' Randomness**: Neither would I ;). And I'm glad you don't hate me. Much. Let's see if I can change that… -evil laughter-

**WackyWizard**: Well, at lest you can admit it.

**Won-Won-Weirdo**: I've decided we're going to do a writing night where I actually write. I promise I will next time. Lol. I love ya! Here's more RLOC goodness..

**Xxvisionaryxx**: Nah.. I don't think it's quite right for a kiss just now.

**Padfoot's Love**: I'm an author! We're some of the most horrible people on this Earth!

Alright, I promise to not reply to reviews in the chapter if there are more than five reviews. It takes too much room. I'll just email back. Here's your chapter.

* * *

"Liz?" I heard someone shout my name. The shock of the shout caused time to return back to its regular pace. It seemed as if time had been crawling by extremely slowly as I waited for Black's lips to touch my own.

"Huh?" I grunted dimly, opening my eyes and turning to find the source of the disruptive voice. "Hayden?"

"I need to speak to you," he said in a shrill voice as he yanked me away from an infuriated Sirius Black who looked as confused as I felt.

"What's going on?" I asked, regaining some sense after taking a breath or two of air that wasn't poisoned with Black's scent.

"You were about to snog Black," he said, shoving people out of our way to get to the other side of the pub.

"And?" I snapped, having had enough of his newfound demanding nature.

"You don't fancy him," he snapped back with equal severity.

"Uh," I said, shocked by his behavior. "What business is that of yours?"

"About as much as it was of yours to start this ridiculous operation," he snarled. He seemed enraged, and I was a bit scared. We were standing in a corner directly across the pub from Black; however, Hayden had made me face him so that my back was to Sirius.

"So what if I don't fancy him?" I said, imitating his anger although my instincts told me to give into his logic. "Do you think _he _gives a shit about _me_?" I took advantage of the momentary pause in his speech. "Exactly," I huffed. "I'm the same to him as any other girl in there, in that entire school…" I paused a moment, weighing Hayden's reaction. He seemed suddenly calm and quite and back to his old self. "That's why we're doing this entire thing."

"You're sinking down to his level to teach him a lesson?" Hayden seemed utterly disgusted.

"Leave the degrading ethics and morals behind the Operation for my soul, and my soul alone, to bear," I said.

"Alright," he laughed, the change back in his personality equally as abrupt. "Promise me one thing?"

"Anything."

"Promise you won't get carried away," there was actual concern in his voice.

"This again?" I sighed, causing him to laugh.

"Just promise," he chuckled as I walked past him and towards the table.

"Alright, Hayden Heathers," I said turning around to give him my best smile. "I promise not to get carried away." I pulled back my chair, sitting down and staring at the middle of the table. I had no idea what to say after an incident like that.

"Right," Black said, getting up. "I'll take that as my cue to leave."

"What?"

"Your boyfriend," he said, turning and walking away.

"He's not my boyfriend," I said to the empty space his departure left behind.

* * *

I spent the weekend hiding in either the Dorms or the Commons. I didn't feel like facing the school. Gwyn, Demi and Kate were left astounded at my antisocial behavior, which I thanked the cosmos for. Their oblivious attitude towards the night before meant only one thing: the gossip circuit was Elizabeth Eden free.

For some reason, I felt that the second I walked out of the Commons, I would run into Black. I was rather surprised that he hadn't hunted me down during my shifts walking the school. Then again, I had been trading hallways with the Hufflepuffs. I knew that the instant I saw him, he would gloat.

He would gloat about how he had scammed me. I thought I was impervious to his womanizing tricks, but I was wrong. He would brag about how he had deceived me into thinking I… I… _fancied_ him. He had mislead me into thinking I wanted to kiss his putrid, disgusting… pink, perfectly formed, soft… horrid lips. Why, the very thought of them was… vile. Yes, vile. I'd settle with 'vile' for the time being.

I didn't fancy him. It must have been the day getting to me. I must have been woozy from the Butter Beer. I had Hayden to thank for the shred of dignity I still had. Yes, Hayden was my savior, for he had rescued me from the womanizing mind tricks of Black.

* * *

I sat in Charms, more awake than I had been in a long time. Our classes had finally kicked into gear, no longer covering the basics as every class does for the first few weeks of school. Still, this might have been just the Ravenclaw in me, but Sixth year wasn't as hard as everyone said it was. It was just rather dull. Besides the ongoing vandalism of school property, nothing much was happening in Hogwarts.

Kate and I had read ahead and already studied the family of Charms we were studying this unit. Hence, we were left bored stiff, staring at our parchment and taking occasional notes to appear as if we were paying attention. I concentrated on my parchment, using every last bit of my strength to keep myself from writing Black a note. I wanted to tell him that I didn't have a boyfriend. However, him thinking that Hayden and I were dating was exactly what Kate said the Operation needed. Besides, why should I have cared if he thought I had a boyfriend? As I was sitting there, thinking these thoughts to myself, I felt a rather sharp pain radiate from my temple.

"Ouch," I muttered, rubbing my temple and looking around to find the object that had hit it. I looked to Kate to see if she knew where the object was. She motioned to the ground, before scribbling down yet another useless sentence. Kate took thorough notes. Each piece of parchment in her bag could be turned into a How-To book. As fantastic as her notes were, none of us ever ended up having to use them.

"Thanks," I mouthed before looking down. On the ground, next to my right foot was a neatly folded triangle of parchment. I picked the triangle up, opening it slowly so as to not tear the paper. I recognized the scrawl immediately.

Eden,

Sorry about Friday night.

Sincerely, SRB

I read the note and looked up at him to find him leaning back in his chair, and staring at a mirror before laughing lightly and putting the mirror in his pocket. Was he seriously self-centered enough to carry around a mirror to stare at every few seconds and smile? He was a sad, sad man.

Black,

I haven't the slightest clue what you're talking about.

XOXO, Liz E.

I took a lot of time writing his name for some odd reason. After writing the note, I took a moment to compare our handwriting. I had always thought of my handwriting as especially good, but compared to his, I might as well have written with my left hand. I especially liked the way he wrote his S's. I paced the note on and sat idly, waiting for his reply.

Eden,

You know perfectly well what I'm talking about. Either that or you're more of a whore than I originally took you for.

Sincerely, SRB

I looked up after reading what he wrote, and stared at him leaning back in his chair. I gritted my teeth, using all the strength I had to keep from going over there and shoving my foot so hard into his crotch that it emitted a sickening crunch. I scribbled my reply quickly, using as much venom as I was capable of while my head was swimming with clouds of rage.

Black (is that short of Baboonish, Lamely, Abhorrent, Caddish, knackwurst?),

I am not a whore. First and foremost, only a whore would kiss you. Seeing as how I didn't, and never would for that matter, it is clear that I am not what you claim I am. Second, even if I were a whore, it appears you like women that way, or else you wouldn't have broken up with Abbott for not wanting to touch your disgusting member. Lastly, leave me alone. This is harassment.

XOXO, Liz E.

I was so angry that my quill almost tore the parchment apart as I was replying. I wrote with such pressure and anger that even the ever-oblivious Kate noticed. She glanced at me, and gave me a questioning look before seeing the handwriting and realizing who it was I was writing to. After finishing the note, I handed it to Brandon Bones who handed it to Caroline Crabbe, and so on and so forth through the appropriate people until it reached Black. After reading it, he looked back and gave me a sarcastic smile before writing his reply.

Liz (is that short of Lesbian-In-Denial?),

I'm glad to see that the whore remark made you remember what I was attempting to apologize for. I didn't break-up with Abarella because she wouldn't put out; I dumped her because she's dull. Get your facts straight. You know, the grape-vine isn't always true, or rather, not in my case, seeing as how the rumors about you seem to be true. Next, if my member is so disgusting, why do you yearn for it? Don't deny it, you **did** just call me a knackwurst, which is a rather large sausage. Speaking of which, should I be offended or flattered?

Sincerely, SRB

It was a wonder my teeth didn't shatter as I read the note. Under normal circumstances, I let Kate or Demi respond to those who are putting me down in such a way… But Black was different. I needed him to suffer. The note, however, was turning into a debate.

Black,

Your attempt at insulting me left me with more evidence of your stupidity. I don't know about you, but last time I checked, denial started with a D, not a Z. Also, if I were a lesbian, thinking of your member would turn me even **gayer**, if that is at all possible. You sure didn't think Abbott was dull the night you caught me in the bath, you seemed more than excited to get a chance to screw her.

XOXO, Liz E.

P.S: I couldn't think of any other words that started with a K. However, seeing as how you're a waste of flesh, I thought knackwurst would be appropriate.

I sat in my chair, fuming, waiting for a reply. It almost made me laugh how quickly our conversations turned into words of hate.

Liz,

You're possibly the most judgmental person I've ever had the misfortune of meeting. Not everything you hear is true. You have no idea who I am; do us both a favor and stop acting as if you do. Now, if we could get back to the original topic, I'd be more than happy to leave you alone.

Sincerely, SRB

I was a bit stunned after I read the note. I would've rather had him yelling at me than the quiet, nearly melancholy anger the note was expressing. I took a deep breath, causing myself to calm down and think for the first time since mini war-of-words began.

Black,

Okay. I understand.

XOXO, Liz E.

P.S: I'm sorry, even though I'm fairly sure it's true.

I sat there, nervously tapping my leg while I waited for him to reply. After a few moments, Kate rested her hand on my leg and pressed down, attempting to get me to stop. I stopped and gave her an apologetic look and instead, began biting the insides of my cheeks. A few seconds later, the class was over and I still hadn't gotten a reply.

"Ready for Herbology?" I asked Kate, getting up and shoving my things into my bag.

"I don't think I'm up to it," Kate frowned, hugging her sides. "I feel a bit sick."

"You're always sick," I said, furrowing my brows. "Come on, don't leave me alone."

"You won't be alone; you're partners with Remus Lupin."

"Earth to Kate!" I shouted, poking Kate's cheek. "Lupin isn't here today!"

"I don't care," she said, scrunching up her face. "I still feel revolting. I'm not going."

* * *

"Three absent students," Professor Sprout frowned, "and it's not even a test day." Patrick Peters was apparently also absent, leaving Severus Snape, Black and me without partners. As luck would have it, Professor Sprout decided that Snape was intelligent enough to work on his own, but that I was in need of a partner, who would be none other than…

"Hi," Black grunted, setting his things on the table beside my bag.

"Hi," I replied, concentrating very hard on the grooves of my hand. After Friday night and the notes last period, he was the last person I wanted to spend an hour with. Today's class was spent making food for the squirmy worms we had shoved into boxes the prior week. This activity was necessary, and extremely easy, meaning that there would be more than enough time to start a conversation with whoever your partner was. Or to sit there in silence and feel the anger and hate radiating from your partner, like in my case.

"I'm fairly sure that's enough food," I spoke up after Black mashed up the berries into his fifth full bowl of food. "I doubt the little worm could eat that much."

"You're right," he sighed after a pause. He put the bowl and the masher aside, sitting down beside me and staring ahead blankly.

"Where's Lupin?" I asked after a few moments of silence. Being socially-inapt, I was used to these types of situations, but this was getting awkward enough to make even me uncomfortable.

"He's having problems," Black replied tersely.

"Does it have anything to do with—"

"Yes."

"Oh."

"Yep."

"Will he be okay?" I asked, sick of the monosyllabic conversation.

"Sure," Black shrugged. "They'll heal and be replaced with scars instead."

"Oh," I said again. He sucked at being reassuring.

"What are you sorry for?" He snapped, finally looking at me. I blinked dimly, not knowing what he was talking about. "In the note. You said you were sorry. Why?"

"I'm sorry for believing the rumors," I said, a bit shocked by his question. "Oh, and for almost letting you kiss me."

"You wanted it," he laughed, running his hand through his long hair and giving me a mischievous smile.

"No," I frowned. "No, I did not."

"Right," he snorted.

"I'm serious," I said, frowning deeper.

"Alright, alright," he said, throwing his hands up in the air. "I get it, I'm disgusting."

"I'm glad you see it my way," I laughed.

"Right," he said, all the humor leaving his face. He grabbed his bag and walked over to James Potter who seemed to be letting his partner do all the work. Gwyn and Demi were right… he **was** moody.

* * *

The tranquility of Ancient Runes always gave me a mood boost. The class was more of an independent study seeing as how only three other students had bothered taking it. None of us were from the same house. There was Severus Snape from Slytherin, Amor Diggory from Hufflepuff, and Abarella Abbott from Gryffindor.

Naturally, the girls sat together and so did the boys, even though none of us ever said a word to each other. I was filling out a chart on the meaning of the different mixtures of runes when I felt a shiver run through my body. I always sensed it when someone was staring at me. I looked up to find Diggory glaring at me, seeming as if I had just killed his dog.

"Exs," Abarella sighed, shaking her head and causing her glossy ringlets of hair to swing side to side.

"Yeah," I said with a meek smile. "I'm fairly sure you'd know a lot about that."

"What?"

"Oh, nothing," I said, returning back to my worksheet. I could feel her staring at me, waiting for an answer. "It's just that I heard about you and Sirius Black."

"What did you hear?" She asked, a frown taking place on her pretty, always-tan face.

"I heard he dumped you because you wouldn't put out," I said, feeling a bit nervous about having a conversation with Abbott for the first time, although we had been going to school together for six years.

"People are so mean," she said, looking angry and sad. "That's not what happened at all."

"Oh?"

"Yes, Sirius would never do that," she sighed, twirling her hair around her forefinger. "He's much too nice."

"Well, what happened?" I asked, unable to curb my curiosity, "if you don't mind me asking, that is."

"Why would I mind you asking? I want people to know the truth," she laughed, "as unflattering as the truth is." She paused to untangle her finger from her hair. "He said something about me being dense or something, but I told him that my volume is the same as everyone else's." It took me a moment to understand what she meant. I didn't reply, wanting to know whether that was a joke or whether she really thought Black dumped her because she had more volume. "Besides," she said, her frown returning, "wouldn't my hair having extra volume be a good thing?"

"Yes," I said with a vacant look on my face. What I really wanted to say was, "Were you born this stupid or did you have to work hard at it?"

"Yeah," she said, nodding sadly. "He also said something about liking someone else.. Oh well." She seemed cheery again, her attention span too short to care about anything for longer than a few seconds. "There are lots of other boys in the sea!" I nodded again, suddenly remembering why I had never had a conversation with her before. Some things are better left alone.

* * *

"Alright, let's go over what we know," Gwyn said as we sat down to dinner that night. "He broke up with Abbott because she wouldn't put out."

"Wrong," I spoke out, taking a rather large sip of my tea and flinching. I hadn't expected it to be that hot. "He broke up with her because she's dense."

"Are you sure?" Gwyn asked, popping her gum.

"Yeah," I nodded. "I know what you're thinking, very uncharacteristic…. But he also told her he likes someone else."

"Who the hell tells a girl they're dating they like someone else?" Demi said as she and Kate sat down. Demi rested her head in her arms. Ever since she had joined the team, she was always exhausted.

"Sirius Black," I snorted. "I doubt he could do anything nice without doing something equally inhumane to make up for it."

"Right," Demi replied. "So, now we know he likes someone else." I smiled at Demi, extremely glad that she had began acting like her old self again. Quidditch had left her too exhausted to care what Gwyn thought.

"But who?" Gwyn asked, now wrapping her gum around her finger.

"Well," Kate said, "think of the type of person he usually dates."

"Dumb," I said.

"Dull," Demi said.

"Dainty," Gwyn added.

"Right," Kate laughed. "We need to find a girl with all of those qualities."

* * *

"So?" I asked as Kate and I pushed our way out of the Commons and into the hallway.

"So what?" Kate asked.

"So what did Madame Pomfrey say is wrong with you?"

"Nothing," Kate muttered, unwilling to talk about the subject.

"Kate, come on," I said, tugging on her robes. "I'm your best friend. Tell me what's wrong."

"You're so oblivious sometimes," she laughed.

"What do you mean?"

"Think about it," she whispered. "I'm only in the Hospital Wing when a certain someone is also there."

"Lupin!"

"Exactly," she said, giggling.

"You're so pathetic," I said, playfully shoving her as we came to the foot of the stairs.

"I know," she sighed. "But it's the only time I get to talk to him without his idiot friends being around."

"Yeah," I said, giving her a quick hug. "Or **your** idiot friends." I walked away and up the stairs, taking the Sixth floor that night.

* * *

The Halloween feast came and went, and pretty soon, we were plunged into November. The girls were spying on Black more than ever, interpreting his every motion beyond recognition. They were still attempting to figure out who it was that he fancied, and personally, I couldn't care less. Black and I had an unspoken agreement to avoid each other. When I saw him coming down the hallway, I busied myself with the latch on my bag. When he saw me in the library, he pretended I didn't exist. It was a happy time.

Alright, maybe it wasn't an altogether happy time. However, I figured that Black had really taken to whatever girl it was he fancied these days and had decided to leave me alone. The girls, however, kept on insisting that they had no idea who it was that Black's heart was taken with. They said that he had drawn from society, and become as socially-awkward as a stereotypical Ravenclaw. They still had me attempt to flirt with him whenever possible, however, more than usual, he seemed to not notice at all.

* * *

"Are you excited for Christmas?" Kate asked one night as we made our way from the Great Hall and to the Commons. It was the first full moon she hadn't spent in the Hospital Wing since Sixth year started. We had just had dinner and were full of warm food and much sleepier than we should have been.

"For the love of all that is holy," I screeched, "November just barely ended!"

"I know, I know," she sighed. "But still. Think of it this way, there are only 25 more days until Christmas!"

"Kate," I scorned, "would you say that if I were Jewish?"

"Probably," she shrugged with a playful smile. After sitting in the Commons for half an hour, we were back outside, ready to start our patrolling. I mindlessly walked the corridor I had switched Susan Suthers for. About my third time walking it westwards I heard a noise. I lit my wand immediately and walked in the direction of the noise.

"Severus Snape?" I asked.

"What?" He snapped, walking past me and towards the Slytherin Commons.

"What are you doing in my hall?" I snapped. "You're a Prefect, you have your own hall to be patrolling."

"I was outside," he twirled around. "Do you have a problem with that?" I noticed that the knees of his robes were covered in dirt, and he looked a complete mess.

"Are you okay?" I asked, taking in his appearance. Scratches covered his face.

"No," he huffed. "No I'm not. Since when do you care?"

"Since always," I said, walking over to him and examining the scratches on his face. "Come on. Are you alright?"

"No," he said again. "You're friends with Katherine Kirkwood, am I correct?" I nodded. "What has she told you about me?"

"That I shouldn't believe the rumors," I shrugged, trying to think of a spell I could use to heal up the wounds on his face before an infection started.

"And do you?" he asked, taking me out of my thoughts.

"No," I shook my head. "There are a considerable amount of rumors about myself that aren't true."

"Right," he said curtly before turning around and marching away.

* * *

The next day in Herbology, Lupin was absent, leaving me to do all the work by myself. Luckily, Herbology was one the easiest classes I had taken. With a basic knowledge of Charms and Potions, anyone could do Herbology asleep. Kate, Snape and I were the first ones to get done, with a few minutes left in class. I walked over to them, avoiding Snape's eyes. I wasn't completely over his rude behavior the prior night.

"Kate, do you think I could borrow your Charms notes?" I asked. Truth be told, I didn't have to borrow her notes. I just had nothing else to say, so I decided it was a good conversation starter.

"Sure," Kate shrugged. "I'll give them to you over lunch." There was a momentary pause. "Does Demi have practice today?"

"She should," I shrugged. "They're working extremely hard since our game against the Gryffindors is soon."

"Oh yeah," Kate said. Professor Sprout excused the class after that, with a little over half the class done.

"How's Severus?" I asked as soon as we sat down to lunch. "I saw him on my shift last night, and he looked horrid."

"Yeah, I saw him too," She replied, not meeting my eyes. "At least the scratches healed nicely."

"You didn't answer my question."

"What?" She asked. "Oh yeah. Uhm. He's fine."

"That's not what I meant," I said, a bit frustrated. "What happened to him last night."

"Well," Kate said, biting her lip. "Promise you won't tell anyone."  
"I promise," I rolled my eyes. "Who would I tell? You're the only person who listens to me these days."

"True," she smiled. "Sirius tricked him into going down a corridor which would have led to him finding Remus."

"But," I said, giving her a weird look, "last night was a full moon."

"Exactly," Kate said with a sad smile.

"You mean…" I waited for Kate to nod. "Are you serious?"

"Yes," she whispered. Gwyn was almost at our table. "But James Potter stopped him. Now drop it."

"But," I began.

"I said drop it," she snapped as Gwyn sat down beside us.

* * *

A/N: I feel really bad! This chapter was really rushed, I hope you didn't notice. I just felt bad for going almot two weeks without updating after that cliffhanger. 


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: So, as many of you noticed, there was no cliffhanger at the end of the last chapter. See? I'm not _completely _evil. The only reason I use cliffhangers is because I get more of a response! And no replies to reviews! I hope you like getting replies individually better. Anyway. I'm a techie (yuck) for the latest show at my school so I won't have as much time to write. Bah.

* * *

"Humbug," I said, walking into the Potions dungeon. Christmas decorations were already hung all around the dark room. "Not already."

"Liz," Kate sighed, "just because you hate Christmas, doesn't mean it still doesn't come annually."

"Hey!" I yelped defensively as I set my things down on one of the tables. "Try being the only Jewish wizarding family in all of England."

"Just because you hate Jesus," Kate said with a sweet smile, "doesn't mean you should hate Christmas." She sat down beside me. "Besides, it's hardly about the celebration of Christ's birth anymore."

"Yeah," I nodded sadly. "Corporate England strikes again."

"Class!" Slughorn boomed as he stumbled into the class, waves going through the fat of his stomach. "Today we will be concocting an ageing potion!"

"Fantastic," I sighed, pushing up my sleeves.

* * *

"You know," Slughorn frowned down at our pot, "Ageing Potions are supposed to be difficult to make."

"Oh it was, sir," Kate said with a nice smile. I could tell she didn't want to hurt his feelings.

"We're just Ravenclaws," I winked, laughing.

"Ah," Slughorn laughed, "well, that's an acceptable answer." He looked around the busy room. "Well, you two can help Severus clean out the cabinets."

"That's what we get for being done early," I muttered as we made our way to the other end of the class.

"Oh don't be so bitter," Kate chuckled. "I like helping."

"Oh my GOD," I gasped as we stood in front of the cabinets of extra ingredients. It was a complete and utter mess. It would take years to sort out all of the different ingredients.

"My reaction exactly," Snape said resentfully as he threw a set of gloves at me. He threw another pair at Kate who failed to catch them and ended up getting hit in the face.

"Katherine," he spoke, "You clean over there," he pointed to some cabinets to the left that were far less messy than the cabinets in front of us. "Elizabeth, help me clean this up." We both nodded and went to where he told us to. I really hadn't expected Snape to be as assertive or socially forward as he was being. Then again, we _were_ in his favorite class.

"So," I said a few minutes later, breaking the awkward silence. "I heard about what happened last night."

"Kate told you," he said, more of a statement than a question. He went through a few bottles, sorting them into different piles.

"Yeah," I said, following his examples.

"I expected as much," he muttered, throwing an empty bottle into a bin.

"Well, can you blame her?" I asked. "I _am_ her best friend." I waited for a moment. There was no reply. "Look, I'm really sorry Sirius Black did that to you. He's an asshole." This caused him to pause.

"Glad you agree," he responded, staring intently at a bottle of aconite. There was another awkward pause. "Not many people see him as such," he spoke, breaking the silence.

"He can be charming when he needs to," I shrugged, "but at the end of the day, he's just a brute." I took another armful of bottles to sort, relieving the heavy shelf.

"Well, well, well," Snape said with a lop-sided smile, "it seems we have more in common than I could've ever dreamt."

* * *

"I hate him," I said, glaring intently at Black as we walked out of Transfiguration and towards the Great Hall.

"Right," Kate snorted.

"No," I said through my teeth, "I really really hate him." He caught my eye, causing me to look away. "Who would do such a thing to anyone?"

"Well," Kate said, always one to come to everyone's defense, "he does hate Severus."

"So that justifies it?" I asked. "I mean, I wouldn't even do that to Voldemort!" I took a moment to think over what I had just said. "Okay, maybe I would."

"Well, given Black's past," Kate said as we passed him on our way to the Great Hall, "and how much of a child he is, this was inevitable."

"Still doesn't make it right," I said stubbornly. I was unwilling to give up.

"I know," Kate sighed in frustration. "All I'm saying is that you're expecting too much from him. You can't expect him to change."

"I'm not."

"Yes you are!" she said, nearly shouting.

"What are you two arguing about?" Gwyn asked as we neared the table.

"Nothing," Kate said resolutely.

"Boys," I replied, cutting over her. I sat down beside Kate at the table, my back to the Gryffindors once again. I found comfort in facing the Slytherins instead of the pesky Gryffindors.

"Ooh," Gwyn had a twinkle in her eye, "which ones?"

"No one in particular," I said, waving the subject aside. We sat in a few moments of silence. Kate, deciding our company wasn't entertaining enough, took out a weathered book from her bag and began reading. I concentrated hard on the cover, attempting to read the faded letters. They read _Jane Eyre_.

"You guys have to come to our game!" Demi huffed excitedly as she set her bag on the table and sat down. She was covered in mud, and extremely exhausted but seemed happier than she had been in a long time. Quidditch had given her enough confidence and ease to no longer care what any of us thought.

"If it fits in with the schedule," Gwyn said with a disgusted look on her face. I sighed, irritated with Gwyn.

"Of course we'll come," I said, taking Demi's hand in my own. "And we'll be the loudest in the crowd."

"I am so excited!" Demi said eagerly. She looked down her at her watch. "The game starts in two days, three hours, forty-two minutes and twelve seconds!"

* * *

The next day, Kate and I sat in Herbology, chatting about the advantages and disadvantages of my red hair while Severus Snape and Remus Lupin were hard at work. Truth of the matter was that as easy as Herbology was for the both of us, it was even easier for our partners. We usually let them do all of the work while we caught up with each other's brains.

"Ms. Eden! Ms. Kirkwood!" Professor Sprout shouted severely, coming up to us. "I've warned you two time and time again about sitting and chatting through class! This is not idle time! This is a time which should be spent learning about the wonderful world of plants and their beneficiary existence!" She took a moment to examine the both of us. I could tell Kate was shaking. "Ms. Kirkwood, I had expected better of you. As for you Ms. Eden, I see now that your partner is far too competent." I looked at Remus to see a satisfied smile spread across his lips. "I don't know what I must do to make you two more involved in the class, but rest assured, I will have a plan. Both of you, and your partners _must_ stay after class."

Then, she twirled around, her robes flying behind her and rushed off. Kate and I gave each other one last worried look before hurrying off to our partners to apologize. Professor Sprout was a generally well-tempered woman, but, as Kate and I were both aware, we had gone too far.

"I'm so sorry," I said biting my lip and looking at Remus. He looked absolutely horrified at having to stay afterwards. I knew that he wasn't used to getting in trouble. "But I mean, it's not as if you're in trouble."

"Are you sure?" He sighed, looking a bit less worried. "I'm afraid she'll blame me for not involving you more in the project."

"It's no fault of yours," I said, gently resting my hand on his arm. "It's my fault for letting you do all the work."

"Well I enjoy it," he shrugged with a smile. "Herbology _is _my favorite class."

"I know," I winked. Truth was that I didn't. He was good at it and I had assumed that letting him do all the work rather than me interfering would get us a higher grade.. which it had. "What do you think she'll do?"

"Probably give you detention," he sighed. "I don't mind doing the assignments alone; it's been nice working with you."

"You too," I smiled, "although you've been doing all the work and I've just been sitting." A few minutes later, the class started clearing out as all the students went ahead to lunch. However, Severus Snape, Kate, Remus Lupin and I stayed behind. I looked around the classroom to see two more people: Patrick Peters and Sirius Black. Oh no.. That did not look good.

"Why are you here?" Remus asked as he walked over to his friend.

"Don't know," Black shrugged. "She asked us to stay behind, too. Whatever she has on me, it's fake. I've been on my best behavior in this class!"

"I've noticed," Remus said, shoving him playfully. "I also noticed that none of the plants have been set on fire."

"Yet," Sirius said, casting Professor Sprout a dark look as she entered the classroom.

"Students," she said, coming to stand in front of us all, "I'm sure you're all wondering why I asked you here." She paused, casting looks at Remus, Kate, Severus and me. "Or rather, a third of you are wondering why I asked you here."

"I haven't done anything wrong," Sirius said, giving her a suspicious look as he crossed his arms against his chest and leaned against a wall. I had to bite the insides of my mouth to keep myself form mimicking him in a childish manner. I looked at Severus, who seemed about ready to jump over there and punch Black in the face. I couldn't blame him.

"Of course you haven't," Professor Sprout smiled. "Now then, back to what I was speaking of before I was interrupted. Seeing as how Ms. Kirkwood and Ms. Eden seem to believe that they are above doing classroom work, I saw it fit that I should switch partners."

"Oh lord," I muttered, clenching Kate's hand in my own and holding on for dear life. "My luck cannot be this horrid."

"But I believe it is," Kate said, with an equally mortified look.

"It seems as if Ms. Eden and Ms. Kirkwood have chosen partners too competent for their own good. Ms. Eden, you will be partnered with," she paused, looking around the room. I could hear my heart hammer inside my ears, I was hoping that against all odds, my luck would not be bad enough for her to partner me with, "Sirius Black."

"What?" I snapped back, before my better judgment stopped me. I took a second to clear my throat, and with it my mind. "Sorry Professor, I fear I heard you wrong. Did you say Sirius Black?"

"Indeed I did," she smiled vindictively. "I hope you deal well with the downgrade."

"Hey!" Sirius cried out. "I'm not _that _bad at Herbology!"

"But Professor," I cried, "you cannot be serious. We suffer from severe personality differences."

"My dear," she said with a self-satisfied smile, "I would be a great deal more sympathetic had you done anything in the class so far." There was a pause as this washed over me. She looked around the class again. "Ms. Kirkwood, I'm afraid that you will have to be partnered with someone of your own house. I hope that is okay?" Kate nodded. "Alright, your new partner is Patrick Peters. Severus Snape, and Remus Lupin, you two are to work together. I hope that your brilliant minds bring about brilliant achievements in this class." She paused to give us one last smile. "Class dismissed."

"She hates me," I cried as we marched our way across the grounds covered with snow.

"She does not," Kate replied, pulling her scarf tight around her neck.

"She does too," I said with another melodramatic cry. "Why else would she partner me with that… that… useless, hopeless, tactless, manner-less _brute_?"

"I think you just answered your own question," Kate replied, causing Severus Snape, who was a meter or so behind us, to snicker. "Severus?" she asked, slowing down for him to catch up with us at the door to the castle. "I'll miss working with you."

"The feeling is mutual," he smiled timidly. "Liz, if you ever find yourself in need of help, now that you're partnered with the class dunce, feel free to ask."

"Thank you very much," I said as we walked into the Great Hall. "And I'm fairly sure I will be in need of your help very soon," I laughed, looking at Sirius Black who was attempting to fit a spoon horizontally into his mouth. Severus followed my gaze and emitted a laugh of his own. He shook his head amusedly and walked away.

"I told you he's nice," Kate said with an arrogant smile to match Sprout's.

"Oh, shut up, Katherine," I laughed. "I never said he was rude, just unapproachable."

"Well, he seems to have finally warmed up to you," Kate said with a smile as we sat down across from Gwyn and Demi who seemed to be enjoying a quiet intensity between the two of them.

"So," Gwyn said, pausing to laugh shrilly, "I see you've both made friends with the loner."

"He's not a loner," Kate sighed, reemerging herself into _Jane Eyre_. "He just doesn't have many friends outside of his house."

"Right," Gwyn said with another shrill laugh. "All I meant was that this gives us a head-start on a later part of the Operation." I opened my mouth to speak out against this, but I felt Kate press her foot down on mine and closed my mouth again. "Were you going to say something, Liz?" Gwyn asked.

"Just that," I started, searching frantically for something to say, "I've been partnered with Sirius Black in Herbology."

"Brilliant," Gwyn said, flashing me a white smile. "Let the flirtation begin!"

* * *

"Twenty-two hours, fourteen minutes and six seconds," Demi said anxiously as we walked back to the Commons after eating dinner. She had been getting more and more jittery as time marched on and got us closer and closer to her game.

"Relax," I cooed, "you'll do fine."

"Yes, I'm sure we'll win," Kate smiled. "Hayden is the best seeker we've had in years."

"And Patrick Peters is the best Keeper _Hogwarts_ has seen in years," I laughed. "I'm sure that if it weren't for him, we wouldn't have won the House Cup last year."

"Besides," Kate said as we entered the Commons and sat beside the fire, "I'm sure you're a great Beater."

"I never thought you had it in you to be so violent," I laughed.

"Neither did I," Demi shrugged. "But at try-outs, I just felt all my built up anger about my family and school being vented into the Bludger. I was so relieved afterwards."

"You have been more laid-back since you joined the team," I said.

"Yes," Kate smiled, "it's been refreshing." I took a second to notice that Gwyn was pursing her lips, undoubtedly dissatisfied with all of the attention being focused on Demi for a change.

"I just wish that Black was on the team so you could send a Bludger flying at his big knob-head," I said, causing Kate and Demi to giggle.

"Pay me a few coins and I'll do it anyway," Demi said with a wink. "Accidents happen, after all."

* * *

Twenty-two hours, eight minutes, and thirty-seven seconds later, Kate and I were sitting in the stands, freezing as we waited for the teams to walk out onto the field and for the game to begin. Gwyn had found an excuse to not come to the game as I had known she would. She had said something about having to study for an Ancient Runes test before rushing off to the library.

"I am so excited!" I said, pulling my Ravenclaw scarf tight around my neck. "I can hardly imagine what Demi must feel like!" The teams walked onto the field, causing the crowd to go into an uproar. I waived my flag frantically and grinned as far as my mouth would allow as I caught Demi's eye. "She looks as if she's about to throw up."

"Can you blame her?" Kate asked. "I feel ill as well." She pressed her gloved hand against her mouth as if attempting to keep everything down. "In fact, I don't think this is just nerves."

"Kate, are you okay?" I asked as Kate's face paled.

"Oh God," she said before bending over and throwing up onto the stands. There were several cries of disgust before I did a spell to clear up the mess.

"Kate, I think we should go to the hospital wing," I said worriedly.

"No, no," she said, getting up and wobbling. "You stay, it's Demi's first game, at least one of us should be here. It's nothing, I'm sure it was just those chocolates one of the third Years gave me."

"You ate chocolate from one of the third Years?" I asked, giving her

an unbelieving look. "Tell me, was she short with a shock of red hair?" I waited for Kate to nod. "Kate, you're an idiot! That's my cousin, Gertrude Green! I told you never to take a thing from her! I had a cupcake she gave me last year at the Family Reunion, and I couldn't see straight for weeks!"

"Oh right," Kate said, looking as if she were about to throw up again. "I remember you saying something about that."

"_Go_," I ushered her, not wanting her to throw up on anyone. She rushed away as hurriedly as she could, and towards the Hospital Wing. And thus, I was left alone with all my friends either sick, on the field or hiding in a library. Sometimes, I _hated _Hogwarts.

"Fancy a stick of gum?" someone asked from beside me, causing me to look over.

"Black?" I asked, looking at him. "Why are you over here?" His gold and red scarf was in contrast to the wave of blue and silver around him.

"Well, I saw you sitting alone and decided to come join you," he said, popping a piece of gum into his mouth. "See? I _am_ a gentleman; the least you could do is be a lady."

"It's not gentlemanly behavior if I don't want your company," I said, giving him a severe look. I heard the crowd cheer as we scored another point. The score now stood at 50:40, Ravenclaw.

"Oh, but you do," he said, cocking an eyebrow at me.

"Now _that_'s not very gentlemanly," I said with another severe look.

"And the way you're sitting isn't very ladylike," he said, causing me to look down and clasp my knees together.

"Oh come on," I said, jabbing him in the chest. "It's my first time wearing pants in months, let me enjoy it."

"Okay," he said, blowing a bubble with his gum. "Let me enjoy the game with you. Now that we're partners, we must at least be able to stand each other's company."

"Fine," I said.

"Fine," he replied. A few more minutes of goal-less game went by. I looked at Hayden, wishing he'd find the Snitch already so we could win and go home. I didn't want to sit next to Black any longer.

"So," he said after a few more minutes passed by, "should we talk about something or let the awkwardness of the situation intensify?"

"I don't know," I said, looking straight ahead. "Why don't you tell me what I should do instead?"

"Ah," I could hear the smile in his voice, "now that's more how a lady should act." I gaped, turning to look at him before socking him in the stomach.

"Sirius Black," I said as he doubled over, "you are the most sexist, chauvinistic pig I've ever had the misfortune of meeting!" I stood up to walk away before I felt his hand clasp tightly around my wrist and pull me back to my spot.

"I was kidding," he said defensively, holding his stomach. He straightened up for a few seconds, attempting to seem as if I hadn't hurt him before doubling over again. "Jesus, for a girl, you punch hard."

"The sexist remarks keep flowing from your mouth, don't they?"

"I'm sorry," he said, looking up at me. "Do you forgive me?" His gray eyes leaked into my own, taking over my brain and stopping me from thinking. "Or do you want me to make it up to you?"

"Uh," I spoke dimly, attempting to get my brain to restart. However, thinking was not an option at the moment.

"Alright," he smiled mischievously, finally straightening his back. "I'll take you out to tea at the Hogsmeade trip at the end of this week, how does that sound?"

"Great," I said before I could stop myself. Not great, not great at all! He was the enemy! He had tricked Severus and almost killed him… and he had killer eyes… and a killer body… and…

"Fantastic," he smiled, getting up and looking around us. "Well, I should take my leave." As he broke eye-contact, I regained my senses. The crowd around me was cheering loudly. I looked up at the scoreboard. The score was 200:60, Ravenclaw. Apparently, my wished had come true and Hayden had caught the Snitch. However, I had been too lost in a certain villain's eyes to notice.

* * *

A/N: That's not where I originally wanted to finish the chapter, but I thought that line was a great place to end. Tune in next chapter for Liz and Sirius's date! Maybe. Lol! I thought that was a good chapter, I had fun writing it. 


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: OH MY GOD!! How long has it been since I've updated? I am so sorry! I swear to you, I'll finish this story. WTFFFFFFFF. I dk why the formatting for this chapter is so awkward. What the hell happened to Fan Fiction since the last time I was on here?!

* * *

"Elizabeth?" Kate asked as I wandered into the Commons. Although everyone was celebrating, I felt as if I were walking to my hanging. "Liz, what's wrong?"  
"I think," I said slowly, sitting down beside her and swallowing the lump in my throat, "I think I just..."  
"Did you eat one of Gertrude's chocolates?" she asked, concern washing over her face. I tried to swallow, despite the serious lack of spit in my mouth.  
"No," I said, "it's something much much worse."  
"What's wrong with Liz?" Hayden asked, sitting down beside Kate with a huge grin in place on his face. I imagined that he was quite self-satisfied, having just won the game. "You look white," he remarked, peering closely at my face.  
"I don't know," Kate said worriedly, taking my hands in her own. "She's not telling me what's wrong."  
"Liz?" Hayden sounded scared as he took a hold of me by my shoulders. "Liz, are you okay? Kate go get Flitwick."  
"No!" I burst out, suddenly aware of what was going on around me. "I just did something horrid."  
"Her hands are shaking," Kate said, sounding mortified. "Liz, what did you do?"  
"I," I took a deep breath, attempting to get up the courage to speak up, "I just agreed to go to a date with Sirius Black." Kate and Hayden stared at me for a few seconds before looking at each other and bursting out in laughter.  
"Is that it?" Kate asked as Hayden lost interest in the frivolity of the situation and walked away. "If agreeing to go on a date with him gets you this shaken up, imagine what would happen if he kissed you."  
"I don't want to!" I said suddenly, my mind going twice as fast where as before it was on pause. "I don't want him to kiss me, that's disgusting."  
"Liz, look me in the eyes and tell me you don't like him." I took her hands in my own.  
"Katherine Kirkwood, you are my best friend," I looked her in the eyes, "and I want you to know that I do not like Sirius Black."  
"Alright," she sighed, closing her eyes. "I believe you."  
"Now where is Demi? I need to congratulate her," I got up and walked away. Sometimes, I astounded myself with how good of a liar I was. A few moments later, I walked up to the Dorms, rather weary of the over-excited crowd.  
"Gwyn?" I sighed, finally finding her in the depths of our Dormitories.  
"Yes?" She asked, flipping through a magazine she had put in front of her Arithmancy book, attempting to seem as nonchalant as possible.  
"Guess what."  
"What?"  
"I think Black asked me on a date," I sighed, rubbing my temple as I sat down on the bed beside her.  
"Brilliant!" she squealed. How come I had the date, but she was the excited one? "This is simply brilliant."  
"Right-o," I snorted.  
"What's the matter, aren't you excited? This is the first step of many, my dear," she said, getting out the notebook she had overtaken from Demi which contained all of our hopes, plans and accomplishments for Operation Black Attack.  
"Well, I'm excited for the Operation," I lied, "but I wish we could get the benefits without me having to literally go on a date with Black."  
"You must make sacrifices," she frowned.  
"But I'm the only one," I muttered.  
"What?" she snapped, although we both knew she had heard me perfectly clear.  
"I said 'I'm glad Demi won'," I replied, standing up and walking to the bathroom. I changed into my pajamas and sat on my bed, waiting for Kate to come up to bed although I knew it would take her a while. She felt guilty for missing Demi's actual game and planned on making up for it by celebrating it more than anyone. Alas, time ticked by in the slow, murderous pace it tends to when you're waiting for something you want.  
"What are you doing?" Kate asked, peering around the curtain of my bed which was left half open.  
"Reading," I replied.  
"Yes, I can see that," she said with a curious look. "But what are you reading, exactly?"  
"Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen," I said, reading it off of the cover. "Why?"  
"I wouldn't have taken you for an Austen fan," she shrugged.  
"Well, this Mister Darcy is rather delectable," I replied, marking the corner of the book and closing it.  
"Quite," she sighed. "So are you over the initial shock?"  
"Of what?"  
"The date with Black."  
"Oh," I looked down at my hands. "Not quite."  
"So," Kate replied, noticing my lack of desire in talking about the subject, "have you given any thought to what you're getting Gwyn for Christmas?"  
"I'm thinking a thesaurus," I laughed.  
"Why?"  
"Gwyn needs a new catch phrase," I laughed, causing Kate to laugh with me.  
"Brilliant," we said together after a pause, causing us to launch into another fit of laughter and consequently awaken the subject of our conversation.

Slowly, time ticked down and the Hogsmeade trip loomed closer and closer, bringing with it a sense of finality, as if all hope was lost. However, these same views were not shared by Gwyn, who seemed more excited than ever. The morning of the trip, she ran around, figuring out what I was to wear, how I was to wear my make-up and my hair and other such trivial details. After panicking for a few straight hours and putting me through a beauty hell, she finally came to a conclusion just as it was time to go.  
"Are you sure you're meeting him here?" Gwyn asked after about a thirty second wait at Dervish and Banges.  
"Yes," I sighed. "Would you just please calm down?"  
"Yes, after all, this is Liz's date," Kate smiled, "not yours."  
"Whatever," Gwyn rolled her eyes. "Oh goody! Here he comes now." I looked in the direction she was gawking and noticed Black, walking inside. I felt all the dread leave my body as it was replaced with a sense of awe. It was the first time I had seen him out of robes in a long time. He was wearing a fitted black t shirt and faded blue jeans.  
"Although he hasn't much to offer in the brains department, his looks more than make up for them," I said, voicing my thoughts to Kate.  
"For the love of all that is holy," she sighed in frustration, "just because you want him to be stupid doesn't mean he is."  
"Stop bickering," Demi sighed harshly. "He can probably hear you."  
"Hi," Black said with a lopsided smile as he walked up to me. "Are you ready to go?"  
"Yeah," I said hoarsely. I wanted to say something more clever, but my brain wasn't working. It seemed my brain left me whenever I needed it most. Had my brain been with me, I still wouldn't have said anything more as I was sure my voice would've cracked.  
"Why is Gywn staring at me?" he muttered out of the side of his mouth.  
"She fancies you."  
"No, that's James," he laughed as he took my arm and led me outside. I flicked my red hair (which was more glossy than ever, thanks to Gwyn) behind me, and cast Gwyn a look. She looked as if it was taking all of her self control to not run after us and boss me around. She made eye-contact with me, and squeezed her arms together, causing her breasts to nearly pop-out. It was the universal female sign for 'flirt'. I sighed, remembering that I wasn't with Black because I was me, but rather because I was a representative for the Operation.  
"Is something wrong?" he asked.  
"No, I just," I searched frantically, kick-starting my brain, "I was just thinking about how much I'll miss being partners with Remus."  
"I don't know if we've discussed this before," he said, cocking an eyebrow, "but do you fancy Remus?" I suppressed a laugh. "Because, you know if that's the case," he said, taking my silence as a yes, "then we should probably not be here. In fact, you should probably be with Remus," he paused again, giving me a chance to talk. However, I liked watching him suffer. "Although, I'm fairly sure he fancies Kate."  
"Too bad," I said, no longer able to suppress my smile.  
"Too bad, indeed," he said, finally picking up on the joke. "I suppose you'll just have to settle for me."  
"What?" I said in mock shock. "What about James?"  
"Oh, he's much too busy avoiding Gwyn, and attempting to win Evans's heart," he said, locking my arm through his.  
"And Peter?"  
"Let's just say I'm not entirely sure Peter bats for our team," he laughed. "Besides, I think I'm better looking than Peter."  
"Don't be too sure," I said, taking my arm out of his lock. "You have a huge ego."  
"I have reason to," he said with a sly smile. "All the girls and half the boys at that school are in love with me."  
"And that's exactly what the problem is," I said, no longer in good humor.  
"What do you mean?" he asked, bringing me to a stop in front of Honeydukes.  
"You're full of yourself."  
"Oh and you're not?" he seemed aggravated. "You've been blowing me off for the past few months!"  
"Well you've been blowing me off for the past few years!" I shouted. There was a moment or so of silence. "Besides, the only reason you notice me now is because..."  
"Because what?" he growled when I refused to finish my sentence. "Because you're acting like you don't completely hate me for the first time since I've met you?"  
"No, because for the first time since you've met me, I look good!" People were starting to notice our little fight. It seemed as if every time I talked to Black, something completely unexpected happened.  
"Is that what you think this is?" he snarled. "Because there are dozens of girls better looking than you."  
"Oh, bite me," I said flipping him the bird, and turning to go.  
"Fine," he said, yanking me by my arm into a death grip as he lightly bit my neck, sending a tingling sensation down the length of my back. He let me go, and I stood a few inches from him as we both stared at each other, waiting for something to happen to make the event make sense. A few seconds passed by, and we both launched into laughter.  
"Did you just," I said, trying to get control of my body, "did you just bite me?"  
"I think so," he laughed, seeming equally surprised, if not more so, by what he had just done.  
"Oh my God," I breathed as my sides began to hurt. "I have to tell Kate this."  
"I'll never hear the end of this," he sighed dramatically.  
"Hey," I said, narrowing my eyes at him, "didn't you once tell me you don't bite?"  
"I lied," he said casually. "In fact, I lie a lot." He paused for a moment. "You know when I told you there were dozens of better looking girls than you?" He paused again. "Yeah, I was lying."  
"You're so cheesy," I said, playfully shoving him.  
"I'm serious," he frowned.  
"So am I," I laughed. "Anyway, where are we headed?"  
"You'll see," he said with one of his mischievous smiles. "I want it to be a surprise." He tugged me along.  
"Well, I can't say I expected this," I said as we stopped in front of The Shrieking Shack.  
"Just come," he said, hopping the fence and holding my hand as I did the same. We ran towards the Shack, not wanting to get caught on the forbidden grounds. He opened the door, allowing me inside before coming in after me and closing the door. The floors were covered in shreds of furniture. I took a sharp inhale, noticing the texture the claws had left on the hardwood floors and furniture.  
"Remus?" I asked, sitting on the ground to examine one of the scratch marks. I was in complete awe. I looked at Sirius as he nodded with a bitter smile on his face. He left me alone for a few moments, allowing me to inspect the Shack at my will, never saying a word. There were so many questions I wanted to ask, but I was afraid to. I knew that he cared deeply about Remus.  
"You really care about him, don't you?" I asked after about another ten minutes. I figured I should finally let him in on my thoughts.  
"Yeah, I do," he said, running a hand through his jet black hair. "It kills me to see him like that."  
"It shows," I muttered.  
"What do you mean?" he asked, sitting on the ground at the foot of the shredded couch which I was sitting on.  
"It's just that... Every time there's a full moon," I laughed, "the next morning, you look like you haven't gotten any sleep."  
"I don't," he said soberly, "I can't. He's like a brother to me." We both felt the severity of that statement. Although Sirius and I weren't that close, the infamy of his brother, Regulus Black, had reached me. "I don't know," he sighed, breaking the tense silence, "I guess that's why I did what I did."  
"What do you mean?" I asked, having a slight clue as to what he was talking about.  
"I know you know about Snape," he said with a bark-like laugh. "It was a big part of why I wanted to meet you today, to explain."  
"Go ahead," I said, keeping my voice indifferent. The truth was that his bringing up of the subject had reminded me of every reason why I shouldn't be enjoying this, why I should just be acting rather than actually being caught up in the moment.  
"I don't know, I just," he got up, and walked over to the other side of the room, "I just get so frustrated sometimes. I mean, it's not as if," his anger was growing, "as if he has a choice." He breathed heavily,attempting to calm himself down. "And the way people treat him," he punched the wall in front of him, leaving a dent mark in the bricks. I was more than a little bit scared. "More than half the school knows what he is." He took a deep breath, actually calming down, and sat down with his back against the wall. "And to see Severus, acting as if he's above him because of something he has no choice over," he closed his eyes, "it drives me insane."We both sat in silence for a long time.  
"I'm sorry," I said finally, and I really was. I couldn't imagine what he went through every full moon. I tried placing myself in his situation, imagining Kate as the werewolf.. and I couldn't bear the thought for longer than a few seconds. At this point, my nightmare was his reality.  
"And Snape reminds me so much of Regulus," he sighed. "I guess that's another reason why I can't stand the sight of him." He still hadn't opened his eyes. It seemed as if he was purging his soul rather than actually talking to me. "I know that still doesn't excuse what I did, but I just wanted you to know."  
"I get it," I said, standing up and walking over to him. I sat beside him, wanting to comfort him, to make everything seem easy and like a joke, but I knew that there was nothing I could do.  
"Good," he said, finally opening his eyes and smiling at me. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make everything so serious."  
"I'm glad you did," I laughed, "or else I would've held that against you for a long time."  
"You would not," he laughed. "My good looks would make you forgive me before you even knew what I did."  
"You're so egotistical."  
"Ah," he sighed, "but you love it." He teased me for the remainder of the hour as he allowed me to, once again, inspect the Shack.  
"Wait," I said, just as we were about to leave, "there's black fur here." I paused, inspecting a set of completely different scratches. "And what look like enormous dog claw marks."  
"Ah," he sighed again, pulling me out of the shack, "that's a secret for another day." We walked back to Dervish and Banges, but for the first time, it wasn't an awkward silence, but rather an understanding that we had said whatever we had wanted to for the time being.  
"Well," he said as we stopped in front of the shop. I could see Gwyn, Demi and Kate waiting for me inside. "Thanks for coming." He bent down, kissing me on the cheek, and momentarily stopping my heart.  
"Yeah," I replied dimly, as my heart restarted and was working at triple it's regular pace. I walked towards the shop alone, looking inside it once again to see that only Kate had seen the kiss.  
"Well, well, well," Gwyn said as I walked towards them. "Do tell us everything."  
"Well," I said, relying on my liar's brain to pull me through yet another situation, "we went to Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop." An amazing lie, if I do say so myself.

* * *

"Liz?" Kate asked as we were walking back to the Commons after patrolling the corridors.  
"Kate?" I replied distractedly as I practiced the excruciatingly detailed spell we had learned in Transfiguration on my mother's necklace. It was a cross which, ironically enough, my father had sent me for Hanukkah. I wore it daily despite everything it reminded me of. Due to my mother's death, and my father's job, I was unable to go back home for winter break. Between that and my summer stays at Salem's, I hardly ever saw my father. To me, Hogwarts was home and always would be despite where I was said to live.  
"Can I speak candidly with you without you holding it against me?" Kate spoke, breaking me out of my trans. I nodded, wondering why she was speaking with so much care. "If you don't like Black... why did you lie about the date?" She asked, trying her hardest to not sound as if she had just called me a liar.  
"I... I just thought it'd be better if Gwyn didn't know," I said in a rush.  
"Are you sure that's the only reason?" she pressed on.  
"Yes... No," I sighed in resignation. "I can't keep onlying to you. I think I may like him," I heard Kate stifle a knowing laugh, "but he's very hard to read..." I waited for her to reply with no such luck. "Besides, he tells me all these things and I never know whether he's being serious, or just trying to... You know."  
"Yeah," Kate said quietly, deep in thought. "I don't know."

"Me neither," I sighed. "That's why it's so much easier to keep on hating him."

Despite avoiding Black in order to smother gossip, I eventually had to see him in class seeing as how he sat straight across the room from me in Charms. Seeing him in robes was a bit of disappointment; they did him no justice. About half way through class, I felt a piece of paper hit my arm with such force that it caused it to sting. I bent down slowly, picking the piece of paper up and opening it. It read:  
Will you go out with me? Check yes or no.  
YES  
NO

I stared at the obscene note for a few seconds. I looked up to see Black staring at me with a smirk on his face. I looked back down at the note, concentrating on the untidy scrawl. Last time Black had written me a note, his handwriting was a beautiful script. Unless a bear had mauled his hand, this was in no way from him. I looked back up, attempting to see who else was looking my way. Undoubtedly, the culprit would be watching my reaction. To my surprise, Peter Pettigrew was glaring at me. I gave him a questioning look. He shook his head, motioned at the note, and then pointed to Kate. Ah.. so this note was to Kate. I slowly slid the note to Kate whose face turned a most brilliant shade of scarlet. She slowly folded the note and tucked it into her book, putting it in her bag. She didn't even justify Pettigrew's question with an answer.

"Hello, Elizabeth," Black said as he sat beside me in Herbology. Although I had left the classroom after him, I had somehow ended up in the class minutes before him. However, this was no surprise, seeing as how he had dozens of female fans, swarming him wherever he went.  
"Hi," I said, giving him a smile. He returned it, and I felt a weight lift off my shoulders. How disgusting.  
"So, Peter..." Black said, doing his best to keep from bursting out in laughter.  
"Yes," I replied. "I thought you said he was gay?"  
"Well," Black said, lost in thought as he leaned his chair back on its two back legs, "maybe he's trying to cover things up?"  
"Why Kate?"  
"I haven't the slightest clue," he shrugged. "Maybe it's her dashing good looks, or her brilliant brain, or maybe it's the fact that she's the only person in this school who's nice to him."  
"Kate's nice to everyone."  
"Yes, and you could learn a thing or two from her," he said, cocking an eyebrow.  
"Oh, shut up," I giggled as a furious looking Remus Lupin barged into the classroom. He rushed over to Kate, his robes swirling in the air behind him. He looked like a black monster, about to take flight.  
"Katherine?" I heard him ask. Kate looked up, immediately turning a shade of red to match the one she had turned earlier. "Katherine, would you like to..." He looked around, noticing that he had captured half the class's attention and sat beside her, asking her something in a whispered tone which caused her to grin as if she had won the Lotto, and which all the class, despite the quite, knew the matter of.

"And there he goes, marking his territory," Black chuckled.

A/N: Oh Jesus. Who knew I had gone so long without an update? Gah! Seriously. It will never be that long again. Anyway. I could end this story in about eight chapters. Or a bit more. Depends on what you all want. **Review**.


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: Must be the sign on my head that says OH, LOVE ME DEAD! You're a parasitic, psycho, filthy creature finger-bangin' my heart. You call me up drunk, does the fun ever start?

That was from Love Me Dead by Ludo. Download it! It's been my inspiration! Sorry about the lack of updates, I really thought I'd update sooner. Lappy was supposed to be fixed by April Twelfth (my birthday), but I had no such luck. Alas, I am back to using the home computer.

* * *

"What are you smiling about?" I asked Kate at dinner. "Oh that's right. Your life isn't miserable." I assumed that her grin was spread as wide as her face would let without tearing into half. She had been the same way the entire week. In fact, it had started when Lupin had decided to "mark his territory", as Black had ever so poetically put it.

"Your life isn't miserable," she said, laughing. "You're just over-dramatic."

"Well, I never," I said, flipping my hair across my shoulder. "Your happiness disgusts me."

"Well.. then, I have _horrid_ news."

"What is it?" I asked, conveying as much interest as possible, which was about an iota, as I flipped through the Daily Prophet. Huh. More Death-Eaters.

"I'm staying for Winter Break," she said causing me to look up and gape at her. "Hadn't you wondered why I hadn't packed yet?"

"I thought you'd just do it tonight; break doesn't start until tomorrow," I said in complete astonishment.

"No," she said, her grin growing impossibly wider, "I'm staying." I thought her face was about to split in two, and her smile would take over her face.

"But... Your parents," I mumbled. Kate and I had a yearly tradition where we begged her parents to let her stay at the castle with me, which they annualy refused but, generously, reached out with an invitation for me to spend the break with them. Then, our tradition shifted to begging my father to let me spend the break with the Kirkwoods, which he, also yearly, rejected. Nevertheless, each year, my father sent Kate a beautiful Christmas present, and her parents responded with an equally extravagant Hanukkah one.

"I just told them that there is no way I'm leaving the castle this year," she smiled. "Besides, Remus is also spending the Break at Hogwarts," she winked. Although she didn't say it, I knew that she had done this solely for me. Our other annual tradition was my extreme depression around Winter Break. Our entire year usually waited for me to get depressed.

"Thank you so much," I screeched, swooping her into a hug across the table.

"What's going on?" Gwyn asked, coming up and sitting beside me. "Why is everyone so jolly? Liz, why aren't you depressed?" See? Everyone knew, even the ever so self-centered.

"Kate's spending winter break at the castle!" I laughed. The day had taken a turn for the better.. The amazingly better.

"Brilliant," Gwyn smiled, reinforcing that my idea of a thesaurus as a gift was, ironically, brilliant. "I know Kate will keep you on track."

"Sure thing," Kate said with a slight note of sarcasm. Her and I switched looks, both of us well aware that the Operation was to take a break as long as we were.

"I'm glad," Gwyn said, popping a piece of bread into her mouth. "Anyway, I better pack." She left the table, taking long strides that got more and more elegant and feminine as she neared the Gryffindor table.

"What the hell was that all about?" I asked. "Does she mean to be that abstract, or is it natural?"

"I fancy it's natural," Kate shrugged. "No one could be that confusing on purpose without also being a male."

"This is true," I smiled.

* * *

"Is the castle always this empty?" Kate asked as we walked down to breakfast the next morning.

"Actually, it's fairly full this year," I laughed. "Usually, it's me and three other students."

"It must be horrid," Kate said with a meaningful glance in my direction.

"You get used to it," I shrugged as we entered the great hall. We sat down at a conjoined table with Dumbledore, McGonagall, Flitwick, Severus Snape, a seventh year Slytherin—whom by her looks, I took to be Caroline Crabbe's older sister--and Caroline Crabbe. "Good morning," I greeted, a bit on my nerves as I took one of the only empty seats, which just happened to be between the older Crabbe and Severus.

"Good marrow," Snape greeted, taking a long sip of his tea before looking up to see Kate. "Good morning, Kate."

"Morning," Kate smiled. There was an all-around tension about the table. "Morning Headmaster, Professors," Kate greeted. There was a bit of a break in which everyone greeted each other, trying their hardest to break the silence.

"So," I cleared my throat. "Beautiful weather we're having." Everyone paused, and simultaneously looked at the ceiling to see a snowstorm in its developing stages. "Or not," I muttered.

"Personally, I love snow," I heard someone speak as a few new people entered the Great Hall. Fantastic, Black and his crew of miscreants. However, I can't say I was entirely too sad to see him and still remain honest.

"Right," Snape sighed, pushing back from the table and leaving the Great Hall. The other two Slytherin girls, whom I took to be his admirers, followed his example and also left, along with the professors and Dumbledore. Fantastic: breakfast alone with Potter, Black, and Lupin.

"Good morning," Kate greeted with a bright smile that showed her enthusiasm for the meal.

"Morning," I mumbled with a frown that showed mine.

"Now, now, Eden," Black smiled, taking a seat next to mine. "There's no reason to start a day with a sour expression such as yours." I looked up at him, giving the hardest glare that I could afford without laughing. See, the thing is that I can't really glare. I just squint my eyes and hope for the best. "Besides," he winked, "I know you secretly enjoy my company." I couldn't help revealing my smile. Don't judge me. "See? I knew it." I spent the rest of breakfast inserting random comments into a conversation about the dangers of Quidditch between Potter and Black, as Remus and Kate were too lost in each other to realize our exitence.

"What to do now.." Potter pondered as he finished up the last of his tea. For about ten minutes now, I had been secretly attempting to capture Kate's attention and motioning for her to leave with me. However, I had had no such luck. Now, don't get me wrong. I _do _actually like Black's company, but lately, being around him had reminded me too much of the Operation to offer any enjoyment. Besides, my feelings of guilt regarding everything he had let me know about himself due to a lie had been getting bigger and bigger hourly.

"Do you fancy a walk about the fields?" Black asked as he grabbed my hand and yanked me after Potter, who had already began sprinting towards the lake.

"But.. Kate," I stammered, attempting to catch my breath as I was forced to run.

"She won't realize you're gone until Remus is in a different country," Black said with no difficulty. I cursed him in my head for being so in shape where as I was sweating after running for only a few meters.

"I challenge you to a race," Potter said, coming to a stop outside of the doors.

"You're on," Black replied, still not letting go of my hand. And with that, they both started running like mad, Black tugging me along with him. "You're too slow!" He said, coming to a stop and forcing me to ride on his back as he held on to my legs and ran. I laughed uncontrollably as he began running, his childlike enthusiasm for the race more amusing than anything I had experienced before.

"What the hell," Potter breathed as Black easily out ran him and came to a stop by a tree in front of the lake. He set me down, breathing heavily and laughing like a maniac.

"Never underestimate me, Potter," Black laughed triumphantly.

"Bastard," Potter cursed, his eyes slit, causing them both to launch into newfound laughter. We sat down on the barren grounds. The absence of snow was a reason for shock, but the clouds overhead canceled the need for it.

"I didn't know you were staying," I said to Potter once I felt that he had gained his breath enough to carry on a conversastion.

"I'm not," he replied, running a hand through his already messy hair. "I'm leaving tomorrow."

"Ah, I see," I nodded.

"I just didn't feel the need to announce it," Potter said. "My fans would swarm the castle."

"By which he means Gwyn Garret would swarm his personal space," Black said in a serious tone.

"Oh, shut up," Potter said, hitting Black rather hard.

"No, seriously," Black said, continuing to ignore Potter and talk to me instead, "I don't get why she doesn't just give up. It's not as if he likes her."

"Girls can be very blind," I shrugged.

"Tell me about it," Black muttered.

"What?" I snapped.

"What?" he replied, attempting to seem innocent. "I said, 'Hell, I doubt it'." There was a rather lengthy silence as we glared at each other. Potter cracked a laugh suddenly, bringing the awkwardness of the situation to an end.

"Well, well, well," Black said, casting a glance towards the castle. "Look who it is." Potter and I followed his gaze, seeing to our extreme surprise, none other than Kate and Remus. It seemed as if they had finally regained consciousness. "You know what this means?" Black got up and began running towards them. "New race!"

"You know, I never thought I'd say this," Potter began after a moment, "but I'm glad I'm leaving Remus and Sirius."

"What do you mean?" I asked, staring at Black hassle Remus.

"I mean that I don't feel up to playing the fifth wheel," he said, and with that, got up and ran after Black.

* * *

The next day at breakfast, Potter swept Kate and I into an awkward hug before saying goodbye and leaving to pursue his "fantastic Christmas time adventure", as Black put it. Hence, I was left alone to another somewhat awkward breakfast, as the staff and the three remaining Slytherins seemed to take Black's entrance as a cue to leave the Great Hall.

"What do you want to do today?" Black asked. "I feel a bit bad."

"About what?" I asked, sipping my tea as I watched Kate and Remus get centimeters close to kissing before realizing that Black and I were there and blushing madly.

"Her," he said, motioning towards Kate. "It was my idea for Remus to ask her out."

"So why do you feel bad?"

"Now you're left all alone," he said, frowning. "But I suppose this would be a perfect opportunity for me to take advantage of." He held my hand in his and stood me up. "Come on, we're going to Hogsmeade." As he told me about his secret passage, I urged God to force Black to talk the entire way there, and rather loudly, so that he wouldn't hear my heart beating. I could hear and feel it within my face, and all because he had held my hand. Love is pathetic.

About half an hour later, we stood in front of The Three Broomsticks. To my simultaneous displeasure and enjoyment, he was still holding my hand captive. He opened the door for me, ushering me inside before following in behind me. He came to a sudden stop, forcing me to do so as well. He looked above our heads and smiled. I followed his gaze, and to my horror, saw a mistletoe. I would be understating its effect by saying it made my heart stop. He held both my hands in his and brought me closer to him.

"I didn't quite picture it this way," he smiled, "but I suppose it will have to do." He leaned in as I closed my eyes and kissed me. It was a simple peck, but it was the perfect first kiss. He didn't attempt to eat my face as Diggory had the first time we kissed, but it was still enjoyable. For a few seconds, my world literally stopped, and I was aware of nothing but his lips on mine.

* * *

The next day, and for a few after that, Kate and Remus decided to join us. Although I had assured Kate, and did everything short of telling her to leave Sirius and I alone, Kate felt guilty about leaving me alone with him and insisted on us doing things as a group. Remus did his best to constantly amuse Black, and thus, I was left to wander the halls with Kate as we discussed different books and movies we had seen or read. The harsh conditions outside kept us from going outside. Still, somehow, Black and I managed to avoid each other. The days dragged by excruciatingly slowly until it was Christmas. This year, for the first time in as long as I could remember, Christmas and the Eighth day of Hanukkah were on the same day.

"What did my dad send you?" I asked Kate as we both began slowly opening our presents.

"I haven't found his present yet," she responded, going through her dozens of packages. Kate, unlike me, had a lot of family. My mother had one older sister, where as my father was an only child. Although I didn't get many presents, the ones I got were generally ridiculously expensive. I naturally gravitated towards the biggest box. To my surprise, it was from ,y aunt, Gertrude Green's mother, and not my father. I opened the box, careful as to not rip anything and looked inside. She had sent me clothing. Lots and lots of clothing with beautifully colored material and elegant stitching. On top of the folded stacks of clothes was a card that said:

Lizzie,

Gertrude let me know of the change in your style. I'm so proud of you!

Love, Aunt Ginny.

P.S: Your mother would be proud, too.

For years now, Ginny Green, my mother's only sibling and best friend, had been attempting to get me to dress like a girl. She was probably ecstatic about the change, maybe even more so than Gwyn. However, her enthusiasm supplied me with no amusement as I read the last line. I smiled as I felt my eyes sting and grabbed at my mother's cross, which was hanging around my neck. Although it had been a few years since her death, it had never stopped hurting.

"Your parents sent me books and a few other things," I said, opening their present. "Oh my God," I gasped, looking at the books. "Kate!" I shouted. "Your parents are brilliant!" They had sent me every book Jane Austen had written along with several Muggle trinkets like a camera, notebooks, pens, etc. Kate's mother knew how much I hated writing on parchment with quills and made sure to send me a monthly supply of ballpoint pens and notebooks.

"I thought you'd like it," she smiled. "I found your dad's present." She opened the package and her mouth fell open. Inside was an exquisite bracelet with a note that read:

Kate,

You become more like family to us every year. Thank you for staying with Lizzie.

Sincerely, Eric Eden.

"I think my dad appreciates you staying," I laughed. "He's probably ecstatic that he doesn't have to deal with my depression this year."

"Your father is too nice," Kate said, enraptured by the bracelet. She moved on to the next present. "It's from Remus," she smiled. She opened the package to reveal more jewelry. This time, it was a beautiful necklace with a heart pendant. She put it on immediately. "I love my presents," she laughed, putting on the bracelet as well. I stopped paying attention to her and went back to opening my own presents. My father had sent me a set of keys with a note.

Lizzie,

You'll see what these are for this summer.

Love, Dad.

I examined the keys. There was one that looked like a car key, and several other keys that I could not make out the origin of. I walked over to my trunk, putting the keys in the trunk's secret compartment and walking back to my remaining gifts. My mother's parents had sent me a bank statement, showing that they had opened a savings account in my name and loaded it with several thousand dollars. My father's parents sent a similar gift. Fantastic. I now was the proud owner of four bank accounts: three from Gringotts and one from a Muggle bank in London. I folded all my wrapping paper into a neat square and put it beside my bed. Next, I opened a present from Gwyn, which was several different kinds of make up. Lastly, I opened my gift from Demi which was a beautiful wizard planner, complete with quill and alarm. I folded all of my wrapping paper into a perfect square and put it on my nightstand, sure that Demi would want it for her book scrapping when she returned from Break.

"So what did you get Remus?" I asked, sitting on Kate's bed and watching her unwrap her presents. She seemed to be done with about a third of them.

"A watch," she shrugged. "My dad says every respectable man needs a watch."

"Mine says every respectable man needs a bank account," I responded.

"Well that too," Kate laughed. We spent the rest of the day discussing our presents and how our friends felt about the presents we had gotten them. I had bought Gwyn the thesaurus, and with a bit of help from my dad, bought Demi the newest broomstick. Kate had given Gwyn a gift certificate to a Muggle clothing shop, and Demi a broomstick detailing kit. We often worked together on our presents.

"I'm surprised you didn't get Black anything," she said as we made our way to the Great Hall for dinner.

"Why should I?" I asked.

"You know perfectly well why."

"Well, he didn't get me anything," I said stubbornly. Kate always brought out, or at least pointed out, the child in me.

"Giving is better than receiving," she scolded me as we sat down to dinner with the professors, Dumbledore, and the three Slytherins. Although Kate and I waited for them throughout dinner, the arrival of Black and Lupin never came. We walked back to the Commons after eating dinner as slowly as we possibly could. A few moments later, as I was going through the gifts everyone had gotten me, I realized something.

"Kate?" I asked, my voice shaking as I stared at today's date in the planner Demi had gotten me. "It says here tonight's a full moon." We both exchanged looks and looked outside. At that moment, a gust of wind forced the clouds to slowly part, revealing a picturesque, and atrocious, full moon. It took me a long time to get Kate to sleep that night. Finally, when her breathing became slow and even, I cautiously got out of bed and walked over to the window and looked out onto the fields and as far as I could see. Somewhere out there, I knew, Black was watching his closest friend, his brother, walk about the Earth as a savage being.

* * *

The next morning, neither of them were anywhere to be found. After eating very little at breakfast, Kate and I walked back to the Dorms. There, I found a slim black ordinary looking notebook on my pillow. However, a note in an elegant script, which I immediately recognized to be Black's, revealed it to be anything but.

Elizabeth,

Happy belated Hanukkah. Remus calls this an instant communicator. Anything you write in here, I see an exact copy of in my journal. I was getting tired of having teachers snatch our notes away in the middle of our discussions. I hope to see you soon.

Sincerely, SRB

I quickly grabbed a quill, and opened the notebook. Kate, noticing my odd behavior came to my side. She grabbed Black's note and read over it quickly, her face fully showing her emotions. She was very concerned.

"Ask how he is," she said simply, speaking for the first time since the prior night.

* * *

A/N: **Liz**

_Sirius_

* * *

**Black?**

A few moments passed as Kate and I waited for his reply. I could feel Kate's concern radiating from her.

_Yes, madam?_

**How is Remus?**

_You know, a lot of men would be offended by this. I give you a priceless, and rather time consuming, way of communicating with me and the first thing you do is ask how my best friend is?_

**By your humor, I'm assuming that he is well.**

_He's in the hospital wing, he should be fine by tomorrow._

And with that, Kate got up and ran out of the Dorms.

**She's off to see him.**

_I expected as much._

**Thanks for the present.**

_Yeah. Same. As much as I'll never admit this to any of my friends, I had always wanted one._

Okay, so maybe I had sent Black a little present. Don't judge me. It was just a cute teddy bear.

**Will you be at lunch?**

_I can't._

**Oh..**

_I'm not... I'm not exactly in the best of conditions right now._

**Are you okay?**

Several minutes passed before he replied.

_Of course. Of course I am._

And in the pit of my stomach, I knew he wasn't. I knew that he was lying. I knew that something was wrong. Somehow, I had known all along.

* * *

A/N: Can you believe I wrote that all in one day? Lol. Thanks for your support. Now support me more and review!


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: _Sirius_

**Liz**

* * *

_Liz?_

I watched the words form in my peripheral vision as I concentrated on my copy of the Daily Prophet. I sighed in frustration at the distraction, and re-started the sentence. To be quite honest, I had a vague memory of reading the same sentence an hour or so before.

_Elizabeth?_

I sighed yet again and picked up one of the ballpoint pens Kate's mother had sent me for Hanukkah: resistance was futile.

**Yes?**

There was a small pause before his answer appeared on the paper.

_I never got your reply yesterday._

**I never got a chance to reply yesterday. I got a bit distracted.**

The pause this time was shorter, though the reply was lengthy.

_Kate finds out that Remus has a few scratches, and she runs to his side. I tell you I'm incapable of attending a __meal__, and you __ignore__ me?_

_The elegance of his writing had been disturbed by his rush to write everything down._

**At least Kate knows where Remus is. **

I knew I shouldn't have written it as soon as I finished the sentence. Sirius and I weren't even dating, I had no right to know where, or with whom, he was.

_Liz... I can't tell you._

_There was a brief pause as I waited for him to explain. _

_I have to go, I'm sorry._

Fantastic. I had managed to do the impossible: I had managed to scare a guy away before I even had him.

* * *

The next morning at breakfast, Kate dashed off to the hospital wing after stuffing some toast in her mouth, and following it immediately with tea. She was anxious to see Remus. To no one's surprise, Black had downplayed Remus's injuries. I hardly noticed her presence, or lack there of, being too concerned with my own affairs to consider her existence. I was lost in my own thoughts, sculpting the faces of my subconscious in my eggs with the help of my fork.

"It's a pity the Hogwarts curriculum does not offer art classes," a voice spoke, jolting me out of my trance. I looked up to see a pair of brilliant periwinkle eyes peering at me from behind a pair of spectacles.

"Indeed," I cleared my throat, put down my fork and gave Dumbledore my best smile. He returned it with one of his own. I looked away from the hypnotic blue pools and surveyed the room. We were the only two still at the table. "I'm sorry, I didn't know I was keeping you," I said, standing up. He looked as if he were waiting for something, and I assumed that that something was my departure.

"Perhaps you should actually eat something," Professor Dumbledore spoke with a small smile.

"Yes, Professor," I said, somewhat resembling a child being reprimanded. I immediately sat back down and picked up my fork, stuffing my mouth with the eggs I had previously been sculpting into a werewolf.

"A sixth year, and still a child," Dumbledore laughed at my reaction to his mere suggestion. I swallowed my food with difficulty and smiled at him. "In my opinion, Youths in the years of Voldemort's rise are forced to deal with too much." Although I agreed with him completely, the name still caused me to flinch. "You need not be afraid of only a name," he commented. He stood up, "Now, Ms. Eden, if you would please accompany me to my office, we have a few matters to discuss."

For a few moments, I thought I was going to be expelled. As we walked to the Second Floor, I went through a mental list of all I had done wrong. Except for sticking my gum under a table in the library, I could come up with nothing. He recited the password to the stone gargoyle and opened the passage to his office. A few moments later, he sat behind his desk, curiously peering at me as I squirmed uncomfortably in a chair opposing him.

"That is a beautiful necklace," Dumbledore commented, causing me to look down and realize that I had been groping my mother's cross as we sat there in silence. I dropped the heavy cross immediately, returning my hand to my side.

"It's my mother's," I smiled, though I had a feeling that Dumbledore already knew.

"Ah yes, Erika Eden, or rather, Erika Ester as was her name when she attended Hogwarts," he smiled kindly, lost in his memory. "She would've been proud to see the woman you've grown to be. You remind me of her a bit more each day—in fact, you look exactly like her."

"I've been told," I said nervously, my voice cracking. If he had brought me here to tell me just that, I was a bit concerned for his mental well-being.

"Now, to the heart of the matter," he said, his face getting a bit more serious. "Mr. Black has asked me to speak to you about his recent absence."

"Oh," I blushed a deep crimson as I thought of the headmaster knowing my personal life.

"I'm under his instruction to tell you that—thought I cannot tell you why—Sirius Black is currently a patient at Saint Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries."

* * *

_A/N:_ **Liz**

_Sirius_

Remember that, because this is the last time I'm writing it.

**Black?**

I waited for a reply, thoroughly out of breath from my sprint from Dumbledore's office to my dorm room. I drew the curtains closed around my bed, even though the entire Ravenclaw Common Room was void of students. I waited for a few more moments, there was no reply.

**Sirius Black!**

My pen almost broke the paper due to the pressure I was putting on it.

_So now you're ready to talk... er... write?_

_**I'm sorry.**_

There was no reply for a minute or so. The waiting was unbearable. I hadn't been this worried since my mother's accident. It was a feeling that I hoped I would never feel again. I felt as if I wanted to cry and throw up, all while emitting a nervous, and lengthy laugh.

_I'm assuming you talked to Dumbledore? _

Seeing his writing did not bring me relief.

**Yes.**

_What exactly did he tell you?_

**All he said is that you're at St. Mungo's.**

I wasn't lying—not entirely. He had also offered me some candy, and then pointed out the cliché irony of Sirius Black, my childhood nemesis, being the object of my affection in my late teens. However, I did not want to scare Black further away by telling him that.

_There's nothing more he, or I, can tell you._

**Do you know when you'll be back?**

_Soon, I hope. They're almost done._

I didn't bother asking him who was almost done with what. I was nearly sure that he wouldn't—couldn't—tell me. And besides, I had no right to know. As I had pointed out to myself every few moments since our first conversation through the instant communicator, I wasn't his girlfriend. Technically, I wasn't even his friend.

**Brilliant.**

_You're starting to sound like Gwyneth Garret._

**I should hope not!**

* * *

_Go to bed._

It was a few minutes after 2 AM, but I was exhausted. I had been shut up in my bed all day, writing back and forth to Sirius. We had talked about everything short of what mattered most, everything but what had landed him in St. Mungo's. I didn't mind, talking to him was a comfort. He was different than anyone I had ever met before. He was refreshingly different, yet oddly familiar.

**I'm not tired.**

_Yes you are. I bet you're falling asleep as you read this._

I shook myself awake and wrote back.

**Fine. I will talk to you tomorrow.**

_Goodnight, sweetheart. Don't let the bed bugs bite while I'm not there to protect you._

I smiled as I read it, put the pen and journal aside and immediately fell asleep.

* * *

"Good morning, Ms. Eden," Dumbledore spoke as I walked into the Great Hall, having woken up moments before. "Glad you could join us for lunch." A few of the professors laughed to themselves as I sat down by Kate.

"Hello Kate, Remus," I said after having greeted everyone else at the table.

"Hello Elizabeth," Kate replied. I looked to Remus, who nodded and gave me a small, and grim smile. We sat in silence as one by one, the professors and students finished their meals and left while I pushed spaghetti around my plate, Kate tore a piece of bread into tiny pieces, and Remus stared blankly into a cup of tea. Pretty soon, we were the only ones left at the table. I jammed a forkful of spaghettin into my mouth, swallowed with extreme difficulty and stood up.

"That was a lovely meal," I said, trying to keep the spaghetti down. "Farewell," I said as I walked out of the Great Hall. I was very anxious to go back into my bedroom and talk to Sirius.

"Elizabeth!" Remus called out, running up to me as I was about to enter the Ravenclaw Commons.

"Yes?" I said, turning around and keeping the portrait from slamming shut.

"Are you angry with me?" he asked, looking absolutely tortured.

"No—why would I be angry with you?" I asked, leaning against the portrait.

"Oh.. Sirius hasn't told you yet," he mumbled more to himself than to me. "Will you do me a favor?"

"Anything," I replied, horrified by his behavior.

"Promise me that when he does tell you, you won't be mad at me," he said. I stopped leaning against the door and looked at him.

"I promise," I said right before the door slammed shut. I had forgotten to hold it open. When I re-opened the door, he was long gone.

* * *

**Black! **

It was the next day and after getting nearly no sleep, I had decided it was time to get an explanation.

_Eden?_

**What in the world is going on?**

_Global warming, war, famine, genocide—you know, the usual._

**This is no time for jokes.**

_War is not a joke, Eden._

**You know what I mean.**

_Sorry, I couldn't help it._

**Alright. Now tell me, what is going on?**

_Elizabeth Eden, you know I cannot tell you that._

**Then could you at least explain your friend's behavior to me?**

_I will try._

I took a moment and described the events of the prior day to him.

_Well, obviously, he doesn't want you to be angry with him._

**...I know that. Why would I be angry with him?**

_Come, come, Eden. You're a big girl, you can wait._

**What exactly am I waiting for?**

_The truth. Now stop._

And I did stop. He forced me to stop by refusing to reply whenever I said something that even slightly concerned his current condition. I sighed after talking to him for a few hours. I was exhausted by all the secrets.

**It's lunch, I have to go.**

Again, I wasn't entirely lying. It was lunch time, and I did have to go... just not to lunch. I closed the notebook and went down to the library, I needed to clear my head. I walked into the library, grabbed my favorite book about Death Eaters and sat down, staring at my favorite picture as I, once again, got lost in my own world.

"Death Eaters?" I heard someone smirk from above me. I looked up to see a pair of dark eyes staring at me. Severus Snape seemed to have sought refuge from the Crabbe sisters amidst the library.

"I find them intriguing," I said. Just because I felt miserable didn't mean I had to act miserable.

"You know what I find intriguing?" he asked, sitting across the table from me. "Your recent behavior." I faked a laugh and returned my eyes to the book. "No," he said, slamming my book shut and causing me to involuntarily look up at him. "Take a walk with me."

Twenty minutes later, we were walking around the snow white grounds in chilling silence. He brought me to a stop in front of the forest, glaring at me with his dark, brooding eyes.

"Do you have anything you wish to talk about?" he asked, pressing the bridge of his nose.

"No," I said laconically, wrapping my arms around myself in a poor effort to stay warm.

"I know we're not exactly friends," he sighed, "but--"

"I consider you a friend," I shrugged. There was a momentary lapse of silence.

"I...I'm glad," he seemed caught off guard.

"You know we're not exactly friends but," I said, repeating his last words as a queue for him to finish his thoughts.

"Right," he cleared his throat, "but I wanted to talk to you. Are you alright?" I shrugged in answer to his heartfelt question. He let out a frustrated sight. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"What?" I stammered after a few moments of confused silence.

"You know how hard this is for me," he said, his hand trembling with fury.

"What?" I repeated, stunned by the 180 in his manner. He shook his head slowly with a sneer and turned to walk away. "Severus!" I called after him, "Severus Snape! Sev!" he whirled around on the last word.

"Excuse me?" he snapped, crossing the space between us with a few lengthy strides, bringing himself within an inch of me. "What did you call me?" He asked in half rage, half disbelief.

"Sev?" I questioned in a whisper. He got a hurt look in his eyes, and closed them. "What's wrong?"

"It's just..." He paused to take a deep breath. He opened his eyes, and for the first time since I had met him, looked vulnerable. I took him in a hug, which I was sure he would normally refuse. However, he hugged me back, reassuring me that these were not normal circumstances. "Lily used to call me that," he breathed as he pulled away.

"Oh," I said, the memories of the rumors of the happenings between them re-awakening in my mind. "I'm so sorry," I said. There was a silence in which we looked at each other, not the way you look at a person normally, but really looked at each other. I could see his pain at having lost Lily to the people that caused him the most pain, and I was sure he could see my pain over Sirius. Then, we simultaneously leaned in, and our lips met.

* * *

_Go to dinner._

I watched the words form. Severus and I had spent the afternoon with each other, but had returned to our respective Common Rooms an hour before dinner to finish our assignments.

**I'm not hungry.**

_Go to dinner._

**Why?**

_Would you please just go? We'll talk afterwards, I promise._

**Fine!**

I closed the notebook, hid it beneath my pillow and left the room in pursuit of yet another awkward meal. AS I walked down the staircase and to the Great Hall, I thought of how awkward and uncharacteristic this entire ordeal had made me. Who knew that one stupid, stupid boy could have this effect on me? I'm fairly sure everyone did. We're all idiots in lov-

"SIRIUS?!" I gasped as I entered the Great Hall. He smiled at me and beckoned me forward. I ran towards him and took him in an awkward and painful embrace.

"Jesus, Liz," he groaned. "I just got out of the hospital."

"Oh," I said, letting him go and stepping back.

"Aw," he smiled, sweeping me into another hug. "You're so cute when you're disappointed." We heard a chuckle coming from within the room and immediately let go of each other. For a moment there, I had forgotten we were at a meal. We both took a seat and began to eat. He sat to the side of me, with the two Crabbes separating us. It was needless to say that I could not see him behind the hulking monstrosities that were the Crabbe girls.

I could, however, see the intense eyes of a Slytherin boy concentrating on me from straight across the table. In an attempt to ditch the girls, he had taken a seat between two professors. He glared at me, daring me took up, to challenge his awe penetrating intense gaze. I finally looked up, more to satisfy his need than because I really wanted to. He gave me a bitter, hurt and tortured smile. Without warning, tears sprang to my eyes. I blinked several times, trying to drive them away. However, at long last, it was a lost battle as one tear escaped my left eye and trailed down my cheek. Severus sneered and turned away.

"Ready to go?" Sirius asked, taking my hand in his own.

"Yeah," I said, my voice cracking. I hid my face and brushed the tear away with my free hand.

"What's wrong?" he asked, never missing a beat.

"I'm just... so happy to see you," I smiled, causing him to reply with an infectious grin. And at that moment, I seriously considered going into the acting profession.

"Let's go for a walk," Black suggested innocently. I cringed as memories of my earlier walk flooded my mind.

"No, I..." I stalled for a reason to decline the invitation. "I'm exhausted." That sounded reasonable. "Maybe tomorrow," I added at the hurt look on his face.

"Fine," he said melodramatically as he walked me up to the Ravenclaw Commons. He kissed my forehead and departed. As I stood in shock over everything that had happened that day, Remus walked up to me.

"Will you go up and ask Kate if she's ready?" he asked, re-assuring my assumption that they were headed on a date. I nodded before saying the password and walking to the Sixth Year Girl's Dormitory.

"Five minutes," Kate said as I entered the Dorms, immediately realizing why I was there. I walked back outside, already tired of playing messenger owl.

"She'll be ready in five," I said, wearing a facade of a smile that Remus immediately saw through.

"Great," he said quickly, seeming upset with me.

"Is everything alright?" I asked, to which he replied with a curt nod. A bit bewildered with his behavior, I sat beside the Common Room entrance, hoping that my company might urge him to explain himself.

"You know," he said, a few minutes later, "Sirius really fancies you." Io didn't know what to say, and hence, let the silence take over. "You shouldn't play with his heart, you shouldn't mess around with him." There was another pause. "Look, I know he seems like a womanizer, but he's never let a girl get close to him-you're the first." And as he finished that sentence, Kate walked out, locked her arm through his and took him away from me. He turned around and gave me a look that spoke a thousand words before disappearing around the corner. It was a look that reassured me more than words could that he knew. He knew about Severus—he knew everything.

* * *

A/N: For you Holiday To Utah fans, the story will be re-written in a collaborated effort with Won-Won-Weirdo this summer. For those of you who don't know what that is, it's a RLOC SBOC story. I will be writing the POV of Elly, and she will be writing the POV of K.C.. Thanks for reading.

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	16. Chapter 16

A/N: The following was written in one day after getting over a particularly hideous case of Author's Block. Enjoy. Oh, btw, this is the last chapter.

* * *

I woke up early the next morning, but lay motionless in my bed as an effort to get to breakfast late. I figured that if I took long enough, the Slytherin would be gone far far away from me and my irrational actions. At long last, I found the courage to climb out of my trusty bed, and re-emerge into the world. After spending a long period of time in the bathroom meticulously brushing my hair, teeth and washing my skin, I finally walked out of the Ravenclaw Common Room. As I walked into the Great Hall, I thanked the great lord for allowing all of my efforts to be effective rather than in vain. There, at the table, was only Sirius Black.

"Nice to see you're finally up," he said with a small smile. I sat down next to him as some tea immediately appeared in front of me. I took a long sip before replying.

"I told you I was tired."

He watched me eat for a few moments, "So what about that walk now?"

"Sure," I said, setting my tea down and leading the way out of the Great Hall. Truth be told, I had no appetite and was more than willing to walk away from the castle at this point.

We walked around the frozen grounds aimlessly, both of us well-aware that the other was holding something from us. But, also knowing that we were holding something from the other, were not quite hypocritical enough to demand truth. Thus, it was with an air of an uncomfortable silence that we found ourselves in solitude within the Shrieking Shack. We were laying on the couch together when I looked up and recognized the look in his eyes- he was very upset.

"What's on your mind?" I asked, wanting to unburden him to the best of my abilities.

"You don't want to know," he spoke with a grim smile after a moment or so of deliberation.

"Try me," I said, resting my head on his chest. I could hear his heart thumping beneath my ear, washing me over with a sense of tranquility.

"I'm thinking about," he breathed slowly, causing me too look up, "the last full moon." He cringed and closed his eyes, as if to seal out the memories. Nonetheless, this seemed to only reinforce their impact as his entire body went rigid with the mere thought of that night.

"What happened?" I whispered, afraid that a louder voice might somehow hurt him. Upon the look on his tortured face, I proceeded to add, "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."

"I know," he said, breathing slowly yet again. It seemed as if he were deeply physically hurt just by recalling the events to mind. It was truly a horrendous thing to watch, knowing fully that there was nothing I could do to ease his mind. "I was... I was in the forest with him," he was silent for a moment. "I'm an animagi, I was in my dog form and I was tailing him.. we all were. We were making sure he wouldn't hurt anyone, that he wouldn't get hurt. We were keeping him company. All of a sudden," his eyes flickered open for a moment, as if he had been hurt suddenly, "there were flashes of light everywhere. Dozens of Death Eaters.. they were surrounding us. It was just me and Remus, I didn't know where James and Peter were. Remus didn't know any better, he was completely transformed, he lunged at one of them and ran off... They were furious, they started sending attacks everywhere...

"I got hurt badly, I remember that much. I remember bleeding, I remember how odd my blood looked on the dark green of the forest floor," he emitted a bark-like laugh, then continued to tell the nightmarish story. "There was no doubt in my mind.. that I would die. I knew it, I could feel it in every single part of my body. I just... knew. I prepared myself," His body felt like stone beneath mine. "And the next thing I remember is Remus, trying his hardest to get them to back off of me... He still cared about me, he still recognized me... And he tried so hard, but it wasn't enough. They hurt him." He took a deep breath. "The worst part was watching them hurt him and knowing that I was too weak to protect my own brother." There was another pause, during which his entire body relaxed. "The next morning, I woke up in St. Mungo's. Dumbledore saved me."

As the story came to an end, I was surprised to find that I had clenched my eyes shut. It seemed as if we had both tried to imagine that the entire ordeal was just a very gory story, that things like that did not happen in real life. Nevertheless, make believe only carries you so far in life. I opened my eyes, the pressure that I had previously put on them causing my sight to be blurry for a few seconds before it returned to normal. I looked up at Sirius who now wore a meaningless smile on his face, as if the previous moments hadn't happened. It seemed as if he only had a certain amount of toleration for serious things, and when that amount was used up, he carried on to act as if everything were alright, and as if the entirety of the world was a grand joke. I sighed, knowing that this was a side effect of being forced to grow up at an early age.

He bent his head down and kissed my forehead, "I'm sorry."

"For?"

"The sudden change in the mood," he brought me up to him, so that now we were face to face. "You should never be unhappy." I sighed, knowing that the only way to prevent unhappiness in this world was to be struck deaf, dumb and blind... in which case one would most-likely become enraptured with the cruelty of God, and ponder the meaning of life, thus catapulting oneself into an abyss of sadness. I always said, and would always say that nothing good ever came out of thinking.

"I'm sorry," I said, kissing the nape of his neck. He seemed entirely intrigued for this act, as it was the first time I had gone to kiss him first.

"For?" He asked, imitating me.

"I'm sorry you have to go through the things that you do," I said. I wanted to explain, but he kissed me on the lips, momentarily shocking my mind and stopping me from thinking coherent thoughts. By this time, I knew for a true fact that no matter how much time passed, no matter how many times he kissed me, every time it would feel like our very first kiss.

"Look at you," he laughed, "kissing a Gryffindor boy who happens to be an unregistered Animagi on forbidden grounds. You're a horrible Ravenclaw."

"Yeah," I said, grinning as well, "I'm a rebel."

At that moment, the door burst open, revealing two people. The first to come into the room was a nauseated Kate, who looked as if she had seen a walking corpse. The second was an exhausted Remus, who, as always, looked as if he had just battled someone to the death over the coarse of several days. The only thing that they had in common was that they were both breathless, signifying that they had run over here, which, in turn, signified that something was wrong.

"Gwyn!" Kate gasped, bending over to take a deep breath. What could I say? As Ravenclaws, we had been grown to have enormous mental strength, and were generally not very physically active. "Gwyn!" She breathed again.

"What about her?" I said, sitting up suddenly, startled. Her very name tended to send shivers up and down my spine.

"Dorms," she said between sharp intakes of breath.

I looked to Remus with a questioning look, who, seeing as how his partner was incapable of speaking at the moment, said, "Kate went up to the Dorms to get her Double Potions notes to help me study, and she saw Gwyn."

"Oh God," I grimaced. "Oh my God. Please tell me you're joking." However, the grim look on Kate's face failed to assure me that it was a sick, cruel joke.

"She wants to see you," Kate spoke at last, having finally regained her breath after her Gryffindor counterpart seemed completely unaffected by the dash to our hiding hole.

"Why?" I asked.

Her eyes shifted to Sirius for a moment before coming back to me, "It's about the Operation."

"Please, no," I said, my eyes widening. "I thought she'd have forgotten all about that."

"All about what?" Sirius asked, reminding me that this was not the correct place to carry on with the conversation.

"It's a long story," Kate said, covering up the fact that I was totally set aback by Sirius' question about one of the many matters which would no doubt end our relationship, or friendship, or whatever he called it in his mind, if he ever thought of it at all.

"Help me," I said to Kate.

She gave me a single nod, and with that, we walked out of the Shrieking Shack. We had, without a doubt, left Sirius and Remus confused as to what in the world was happening. We walked quickly, although I had a feeling in the pit of my stomach as if I were walking to my own hanging. I couldn't help but keep myself from thinking that the shit had hit the fan. I knew that I had to do my best, lie at my best, do everything I could to make Gwyn believe that nothing had happened while she was gone.

"What will we say?" I asked, unable to come up with an efficacious lie as my mind was plunged into a panic.

"You are friends," Kate spoke solemnly. "You are nothing more, and nothing less. And nothing," she sent me a chilling look, "happened with Severus."

I gulped, feeling as if I were about to throw up, "Right. It's as if she's cursed me." The castle was slowly coming into our view as we sped towards it.

"As if the very thing you fight hardest to avoid finds you first," she said. I nodded in agreement. "But you see, the thing about life is that this is often times the case." That was the end of our conversation until we reached the castle, and a few moments later, the Dorm rooms for the sixth year Ravenclaw girls.

"Hi there!" Gwyn said with a fake smile, sweeping Kate and I into a lung-collapsing hug. "I missed you all so much!" Her voice was so sugary sweet that a person having never met her before would clearly see the lies embedded into each of her actions.

"Welcome back," Kate and I said in unison, catching ourselves off-guard.

"So, dish," she said, sitting on her bed and putting away the glossy magazine she had been flipping through. "What's new since I've been gone?"

"I'm friends with Black," I shrugged, "nothing more, nothing less." The words sounded strong to me, as if nothing more were ever to happen, and thus, Gwyn should leave me and my love life alone.

Nevertheless, this did not seem to be the case to Gwyn, as she went on to say, "Brilliant! It's the beginning of something more." Kate and I exchanged a deadly look.

"No," I said, shaking my head. I refused to attempt to be civil. Maybe it had been the stress of the many lies of the day, or maybe it was that I had finally had enough.. Whatever it was, I was ready to tell Gwyn to back off and leave me alone for the first time in my life.

"What do you mean?" She seemed stunned, immediately picking up on the fed-up tone in my voice.

"I'm done doing what you tell me to," I said, deciding that I had come too far and done too much to just go back on my knees and obey what she told me. "I am not your puppet," I spat, "and I am done with this ridiculous Operation, and your ridiculous ideas."

"I thought this would happen," she sneered. "You like him, don't you?"

"That's none of your business," Kate spoke up.

"You're both full of it," she rolled her eyes, getting up off of the bed and standing across the room from me. "He kissed you, didn't he?" I didn't reply, causing her to carry on, reassured that we had, indeed, kissed. "And you are so pathetic and inexperienced to think that he's actually fallen for you."

_"He_ kissed _me_," I said through a clenched jaw.

"You think a boy could like _you_?"

"Well, at least I can get a guy to take a look at me," I said, throwing tact to the winds. "You're always throwing yourself at Potter, and he never even _looks_ in your direction. Haven't you realized he thinks you're trash?" For a few seconds, Gwyn looked stunned, and I took advantage of it. "Black and I, we fancy each other."

"We?" Gwyn laughed after a momentary setback. "Honey, there is no 'We'. There is 'me', and there is 'him'. Haven't you opened your eyes and realized it yet? You _are _me. _I _made you. It's not you that he likes, it's me."

"Fuck off," I muttered before whirling around and walking out of the Dorms. I continued to walk, mentally stunned by what had just taken place. Although I was completely unaware of where I was heading, I soon found myself at the lake. I sat beside it, staring over the grey, cold water as I contemplated everything that had happened. I stared at the calm lake, going over everything that had taken place in a trance-like manner for what felt like only a few moments, but what I knew where a few hours. It all felt like a nightmare, and I felt as if I would wake up at any moment to find that nothing had changed at all, that everything was the way it was at the beginning of the year. But that was a reason why I was glad that the catastrophe had happened. Without it, I would've never gotten up the courage to tell Gwyn to bug off.

I skipped a rock across the clear lake, causing the reflection of the tree to shatter into a thousand pieces as the rock made it's journey across the ice cold water. I looked at the lake, and could see the very top of my head reflected in the pool of water. I bent forward to check to see that the tears that I knew were running down my face hadn't done too much to ruin my make-up. And that was when it hit me... Gwyn was right. I was her. As I looked into the lake, it seemed as if a red-haired Gwyn was staring back at me. I threw my fist into the lake, doing whatever I could to shatter the horrifying vision and got up, walking back to the castle. I no longer had any desire to be within nature.

I managed to spend at least another hour in the empty library, staring at a book which had happened to be closest to me when I had entered the place. I stared without seeing, too busy being in shock to grasp anything beyond simple colors around me. Eventually, it was a growl in my stomach that made me stand up. I looked up at the grandfather clock in the library, realizing that it was lunch time. I knew that everyone would be in the Great Hall, and thus, went to the Ravenclaw Commons. I knew I had some sort of food stashed somewhere in my Dorm room. I ate there, still unwilling to face anyone. After I had eaten enough to stop my stomach from making noises, I returned to the library, staring, yet again, at the same book.

"We have got to stop meeting this way," a voice said, causing me to look up and peer into the eyes of Severus Snape.

I looked back down, too much of a coward to face him, "Yeah."

"So I had a nice chat with your friend," he said.

I felt a hot tear trail down my cheek, burning my skin in it's path, "And how was that?" My voice had cracked.

"To quote your friend, 'brilliant'," he replied laughing. I felt the shock going through me as I realized exactly whom he had talked to, and what he had told her. I looked up to find confirmation in his face but needed none when I realized that he was long gone, leaving me in the absolute silence of the library to cerebrate what I had done. I got up after a few moments, wanting nothing but the solitude of my bed.

As I was walking to the Ravenclaw Commons, a most peculiar event caught my eye. I looked to the side to see Gwyn standing with her back to me, talking to a very angered Sirius Black. He caught my eye, causing me to take a sharp intake of breath in surprise of their intensity, he gave me a disgusted and hurt look before looking away. Gwyn flipped her golden hair behind one shoulder, looking at me with a nasty sneer in place on her face before winking at me and looking back at Sirius. I ran up the stairs and to the Commons, barely able to utter the password between my sobs. When I finally managed to, I flung myself within the room and ran blindly to our Dorms. I lay on my bed motionless, and noiseless, nothing giving my feelings away but the heaving of my shoulders.

After what felt like ages, I finally stopped. The discontinuation of my crying was not by any means caused by a discontinuation of a sadness, but rather because I had no more tears to cry. My eyes and lungs felt raw, as did my heart. I closed my eyes, knowing that there would be hell to pay in the morning when I would be unable to open my eyes due to their puffiness. I heard the door to the Dorms open, and heard a set of footsteps approach my bed. Then, I felt a weight press down on my mattress, right beside my back and legs.

"She told him," Kate whispered. "She told him everything."

My tears renewed, although this time there was no heaving. I simply felt as if my world had ended, and in a lot of ways, it had. I have no recollection of the next few days, and know only a few facts. I know that I did not leave my room, and I know that I was utterly, completely and absolutely miserable. I dodged Black, Snape, and Lupin for the remainder of the break, and it was equally obvious that they dodged me. I remember Kate telling me that she hadn't seen Sirius in a few days on New Year's Eve.

Then, the students came back, all refreshed and rejuvenated from winter break. Classes came about. On our first day back in Herbology, Sirius talked to the Professor, ending in Kate and I being partners, and him and Remus being partners. We sat in opposite corners of every single class, working very very hard to avoid each other's eyes. Although I was hyper conscious of him, I somehow managed to avoid his existence, and he managed to avoid mine.

During the last Hogsmeade trip of the year, I was in Zonkos with Demi and Kate, discussing in whispered tones our plans for the summer. Although none of us, or anyone else for that matter, were friends with Gwyn, she was just a few meters away from us and none of us wished to have the plans for our friendship overheard by her, lest it hurt her enough to cause her to strike again, and ruin my life for yet another time. I was knocked into a corner of the store by an incoming surge of students, joyous that another year was over and that in a week, we would be free of all dictatorship from our teachers. I waved at Kate and Demi whom, due to the crowd, were at the opposite side of the store from me. I looked around me and nearly chocked on my own breath when I realized that Sirius Black stood less than a few centimeters from me. I tried hard to get away as he seemed very interested in something on one of the shelves and was unaware that I was there.

"Well, hello there," he said bitterly when he finally looked up and saw that I was there.

"Hi," I muttered, afraid that speaking to him, even after all this time had passed, would betray me and reawaken my misery. I looked at the ground, afraid to a certain extent to make eye-contact.

"I've been waiting for you to speak to me," he said. There was a lapse of silence in which I shouted myself to speak, to bear my soul, to tell him everything but in which I proceeded to take in the texture of my shoes in silence. "That's what I thought you would say," he said, stepping impossibly closer to me. "You know, I knew about the Operation the entire time. Kate decided to tell me as soon as you guys started it. She knew something would go wrong," I took in his scent for what I knew was going to be the last time, feeling very self-conscious as I stood next to his magnificent figure, still intent on examining my shoes. "And that's not what bothered me, not even the kiss with Severus, as disgusting as it is. What bothers me most is that you didn't care about us enough to do anything to save the relationship." And with that, he was gone, fighting his way through the crowd very had to get away from me.

I exhaled, realizing that I had been holding my breath since taking in his scent, subconsciously trying to hold on to it. My body shook as a few tears escaped the brim of my eyes and I walked outside and back to the castle, unable to be around my friends or anyone else. The last week of school sped by, leaving me before I knew it in a compartment with Kate and Demi, on our way back to our homes. I was unable to speak on the way back, having had Black's words running through my mind nonstop for the past seven days. I was in yet another trance, refusing to believe what he had said. It wasn't that I didn't care enough, it was that I couldn't face what I had done to him. I couldn't face that I hurt him, I couldn't face that I had caused him pain. I couldn't face owning up to the fact that I had caused him sadness.

The train pulled to a stop seemingly immediately after I sat down. We got off, hugging each other goodbye and promising to write each other as soon as possible. We were to spend a large part of the summer together as Kate and Demi were intent upon getting me out of Salem's for as long as they could. As I got walked out of the station, I looked around me, waiting for one of the Salem's staff workers to retrieve me and take me to the institute.

"Dad?" I stammered, seeing my father for the first time in a year. He looked exactly the same. Nothing had changed. His hair was still the same youthful brown, his height was still astoundingly tall, his eyes still grey, and the wrinkles at the edges of them still evident when he smiled. He swept me in a hug, easily picking me up and kissing me on the cheek.

"Hey, Lizzie," he laughed. "Are you surprised to see me?" I nodded. "Well, didn't you wonder what the keys were to?" I gave him a questioning look. "Your Hanukkah present? The set of keys?"

"Oh," I said, knowing exactly which compartment of my trunk they were hidden in. "Yeah, what about them?"

"One's to a car, and the other to a new house," he smiled. I gave him another questioning look, unaware where he was headed with this conversation. "Pumpkin, we moved." He loaded up my luggage onto a Muggle car that he got from his job at the ministry. "I got a promotion, and I don't have to travel as much," he said. I gaped at him, causing him to laugh with pleasure. We then got in the car and he began driving towards our new house in silence. "What's wrong? Aren't you happy?"

"I'm ecstatic, Dad," I said with a fake smile. Although this was what I had always wanted, as we sped away from the train station, the only thing I could think of was Sirius Black. The only thing that was in my mind was Sirius Black and how much I missed his intoxicating scent, the one that came with his close proximity, the one which I knew at that moment that I had lost forever.

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A/N: There will be an epilogue.


	17. Epilogue

I swayed back and forth slowly on the swing set in the middle of the playground. I stared at my feet, feeling the synthetic sand in between my toes. I looked up to see a setting sun and realized that I would soon have to go home in order to beat my father for dinner. I got up, put on my flip flops and pushed my hands deep into the pockets of my khaki shorts, deciding to take the short route home through the wooded glen. As I brushed the few stray chunks of hair that had escaped my ponytail behind an ear, I noticed a big black dog running around on the playground.

The first time I had seen him was before my two week visit to Demi's house. I had immediately alerted my father, afraid that seeing the grim was a foreshadowing of my death. However, my father had just told me what he had been told—that it was a black dog belonging to one of the families up the street, though he never told me which. As I made my way through the crowded patch of forest in order to get to my house, I smiled, realizing how pleased I was to be able to whip out my wand if a creature, or deranged human lunged at me. Living in a strictly wizard community definitely had its advantages.

When I got home, my father and I had dinner while discussing the ministry's newest ideas about how to go about capturing Voldemort. He almost spat out his mashed potatoes as he began laughing uncontrollably while he recalled something someone at the office had told him. Apparently, one of his colleagues thought it suitable to just go up to Voldemort and shoot him with a Muggle gun. I laughed as well. After dinner, I decided to go on another walk, the beautiful summer weather making it impossible to stay inside without a resentful feeling. This time, I decided to walk up the street. A few blocks from our house was a beautifully made mansion, and I still had no clue as to whom it belonged to. When I got there, I saw the black dog again, this time on the mansion's lawn, lolling about as if he was having the time of his life.

Upon sensing that I was near, his head perked up and he stared at me, tilting his head to the side. He seemed perplexed by the thought that I should be there at that time, or exist at all. He then jumped up and ran towards me at full speed. I screamed and braced myself for his attack. However, when he came to me, instead of ripping out my throat as I thought he would, he proceeded to rub himself against my legs.

"Hi, Dog," I said, watching him and laughing slightly at my previous reaction. My father had always made fun of me for talking to animals as if they were human, but told me that my mother always did the same, and so, I felt encouraged to keep on doing it. "You scared me."

He stopped at that and looked up at me, looking hurt.

"I'm sorry," I shrugged, "but you're a tad bit on the enormous side. Wanna know a secret?" He continued to stare at me as if I existed for his amusement only. I decided to keep talking, now in a whisper, "I thought you were a grim." He barked then, and it reminded me of someone I knew long ago, although I couldn't exactly remember whom at that moment. I just knew that his bark resembled a long lost friend's laugh.

He now looked at me, and back at the house, looking torn between his new friend and his old home. At long last, he barked at me one last time and ran to the mansion. I shrugged as I watched him go and decided to walk back to the swings. In the short time I had been here, the swings had become my favorite pastime activity. Before I knew it, he was back at my side, this time with a large fake bone. We walked in silence until we got to the park, at which point he rammed his nose into my leg repeatedly until I looked down.

"What is this?" I asked him. "I'm not a dog, I don't like bones." He rammed his nose into my leg again. "Oh, you want to play?" He barked an approval. I took the bone and threw it. He ran after it and brought it back to me. We repeated this motion for about a half hour. "You know, I don't see what the big deal is about this game. I throw something, you bring it back, where's the fun? Where's the motive? Does anyone even win?" He barked yet again, this one also sounding like a laugh. This time, however, I knew exactly who it reminded me of. I smiled to myself as the dog began running away again. "You remind me of Sirius Black." He turned around and began running towards me.

This time, he nearly tugged me back to the mansion. Once we were there, he barked at me and then ran back to the mansion as he had done before. This time around, however, he took the bone in and when he came back out, was carrying a stuffed animal. I was sitting down, as his return had taken quite a while. He came up to me excitedly and pressed the stuffed animal into my lap.

"Now this gift, I can use," I smiled, examining the adorable bear. It was evident that he chewed on the bear's ear, whether while he was asleep or awake, I didn't know. "You know, I gave one like it to... Sirius?" It all suddenly clicked. The dog, the bear, the laugh.. and I couldn't believe it had taken me so long to figure it out. "Sirius Black, is that you?" My heart thudded rapidly as the dog backed up, barking and then jumped, turning into Sirius. "Woah," I muttered. It had been breath-taking to watch him turn into a dog. But now, I had a whole new set of worries, like having to finally talk to him.

"You're an impostor," he grinned, sitting down next to me. "You _cannot_ be a Ravenclaw. It took you so long to figure it all out."

"Well," I scoffed, "Sorry if I don't walk around thinking of animals and what characteristics of people I know they have."

He shrugged and leaned back on his forearms, laying on the asphalt, "I do it all the time."

"Well aren't you a genius," I said, causing us to sit there in a silence. "Look, are we going to actually talk or keep making dumb jokes?"

"It's up to you," he said, getting up and walking towards the park. I did the same, finally able to say to him everything I had thought over nightly since the entire fiasco.

"Right," I sighed. "Look, I'm so so so so so sorry. And I mean about everything. I'm sorry about the entire Operation, but if Kate told you about it then she must have told you--"

"That you weren't really into it," he smiled. "In fact, she told me you might be using it as an excuse to just talk to me." I shook my head, forever stunned by the perception of my best friend.

"And the kiss with Severus? I don't even know what happened."

He stuck out his tongue in disgust, "I don't, either. I mean, I'm such a good kisser and I'm fairly sure he's awful. Couldn't you at least kiss someone that wouldn't shame my name? I don't mind if you cheat on me with someone more attractive than me, although I doubt that's even remotely possible."

"You never stop, do you?" I laughed, amazed that he could continue to be arrogant in such a conversation. "And I don't know, I guess I didn't talk to you because I didn't have the courage to realize what I had done. I mean, that very day, when we were in the Shrieking Shack? I told you that you shouldn't go through pain, and I just turned around and hurt you."

"You didn't want to realize that you're a horrid girlfriend," he nodded. "All completely reasonable."

"You cannot be this understanding," I gaped at him in shock.

He shrugged, "I've had some time to think it over. I wasn't exactly great with that relationship, either."

"So," I sighed, "What happens now?"

"No clue," he laughed, curling his pinkie through mine as a small way of holding hands, "I guess we'll just have to wait and see."

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A/N: Thank you, thank you, thank you. Thank you all so much for reading, reviewing, adding the story, or me, to your favorites and alerts list. Thank you all so much for persuading me to finally finish a long fan fic. Special thanks to Won-Won-Weirdo for helping with the plot, and for reviewing EVERY SINGLE chapter. If it weren't for you, I still wouldn't be done with this. As you can all see, the story is open to a **sequel**, although I haven't decided whether to write one or not. If I do, an announcement will be posted on this fan fic first, so keep it on your alerts if you're interested. Also, keep your eyes open for Eternal Devotion, the co-authored story with Won Won Weirdo. It's also a RLOC SBOC story with vampires and werewolves! It should be most exciting. A notice for that story, as it's being posted on a different penname, will also be posted on this story first. Nearly all of my goals for this story were met. It has nineteen favorites, and fifty-nine alerts. I'm also only five reviews away from meeting my last goal, so **review**. Once again, _**THANK YOU!!**_


	18. Sequel Announcement

**A/N**: There is going to be a sequel, I just need a title. Feel free to review with your ideas for the _**title**_. A link to the actual story will be posted shortly.

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**_Teaser:_**

**A/N**: Although this is a sequel, you don't _really_ have to read the first story to get it.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own nor claim the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling. This also applies to every chapter posted under this story.

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"Hello," I said, turning my back on the group of Seventh Years to face the blackboard. "My name is Elizabeth Eden." I wrote my name down, trying very hard to not cough as I inhaled a cloud of chalk dust.

I turned around just as a bright eyed blond boy said, "If you're our substitute, why haven't you been here for the past week?"

"Uhm," I began, having a flashback of partying with Kate in her new home within Hogsmeade, "there was an emergency, which delayed Dumbledore's getting a hold of me."

"How long are you staying?" asked another.

"Until your professor returns," I said, realizing that although this was my first day on the job, I had already lost all emotion in my voice. "Now then, onto the lesson..."

Maybe I should briefly explain the events that brought me to this point... During the summer of Sixth year, Sirius and I discovered that we weren't right for each other. By "Sirius and I", I mean I, and by "discovered that we weren't right for each other", I mean discovered he was sleeping around when we were together. It's complete brilliance on his part, if you ask me.

Immediately after I broke up with him, Seventh year started and in an attempt to ignore the rumors, and Sirius, I threw myself into my school work more than any Ravenclaw ever had before, which is really saying something. After Hogwarts, I got a job with the Daily Prophet and climbed my way up the ladder until I was the Editor in Chief.

All in my corporate life was going well until very recently the Ministry started censoring what we could and could not put in the paper. The Minister of Magic and I both thought that I should step down from my office and take a break from the editing world. Although I expressed myself rather well and told Cornelius that I wasn't going to be a part of his idea of "truth", he insisted that I take a break, saying that I would see things from his perspective after being away from the pressures of my job.

And _that_ is how I found myself doing Dumbledore a favor by taking the place of one of his professors while he/she was away on business for the Order, which Dumbledore had solicited me to join many a time before. I had decided to take the job because it was close to Kate's house, and would give us more of a chance to see each other. Kate had also ensured me that there were new additions to the Staff, and that there were rumors of a few other teachers in their early twenties. Although I hadn't seen the staff yet, I was excited to not be the only professor below fifty years of age.

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**A/N**: **R&R**, esp. if you have ideas for the **_sequel's title_**.


	19. Announcement

Posted under "Professor Eden: Beyond Hopeless Teacher" on this account. Check the author's page.


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